Founded in 1995, the Most Secret Method featured the trio of Johanna Claasen (bass guitar, vocals), and brothers Marc Nelson (lead guitar, vocals) and Ryan Nelson (drums). The band's name was taken from a line from the book
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by
Roald Dahl. Live performances in the D.C. punk scene's abundance of venues and widely observed all-ages policy helped the group hone their heavily emphasized rhythm technique, while attracting a sizable following in a brief amount of time. Additionally, the Most Secret Method incorporated stylistic tendencies from like-minded groups of the D.C. punk community such as
Juno,
the Dismemberment Plan,
Smart Went Crazy, and
Jawbox. Ryan Nelson thought "to a large extent the D.C. musicians of the ‘90s were influenced by the Revolution Summer bands. I certainly was. And by the time we got around to forming our own bands, there was still an active underground community – a network of places to play and kids to stay with around the country". In addition to the band's musical aesthetic, much was made of Ryan Nelson's visual art designs on the Most Secret Method's concert fliers. Well aware of the designs of artists including
Raymond Pettibon (designer of
Black Flag album covers and the
Sonic Youth's
Goo artwork),
Love and Rockets creator
Jaime Hernandez, and
Ghost World writer and artist
Daniel Clowes, Nelson's artwork for the band became immediately recognizable and considered among the best the area produced. Combine with the group's split EP, Nelson's artistic style was instrumental in landing their record deal with
Slowdime Records in 1998. Music historian Brandon Gentrey described the album as a "sterling example of Capitol City post-hardcore indie ruckus, buzzing, dynamic, and smart", while managing to stand the test of time. Following the distribution of
Get Lovely, the group had a down period in which the band members took to other activities. Ryan Nelson played in the bands the Dead Teenagers and
Beauty Pill, Marc Nelson devoted time to acting, and Claasen focused on practicing
standup bass, before resurfacing in 2002 to release their second album
Our Success. In August 2002, the Most Secret Method returned for a series of concerts at the Black Cat before disbanding. Marc Nelson began acting full time under the stage name Marcus Kyd. He went on to found Taffety Punk Theatre Company in Washington, DC, with choreographer Erin F. Mitchell, actors Lise Bruneau and Chris Marino, and manager Amanda MacKaye. == Discography ==