When Marco Benevento and Joe Russo linked up in 2002 for a month-long residency at New York’s Knitting Factory, they had no idea that their quirky collaboration would eventually attract a national audience. But, in the five-plus years since the project began, the Benevento-Russo Duo has shocked crowds all over the country with its dynamic sound. The Duo has played at major festivals like Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo, and they will perform alongside the Beastie Boys, R.E.M. and dozens of others at the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida next month. They have also toured and performed with former Phish members Mike Gordon and Trey Anastasio, and have appeared in opening slots for Phil Lesh & Friends and others. The Duo’s third studio CD is currently in the works, and the two-man-band has a pair of gigs at The Stone Church in Newmarket, on Thursday and Friday, Feb. 7 and 8.

Although the Benevento-Russo Duo is hardly a household name (or pair of names), many Seacoast fans await the upcoming shows with much anticipation. The group has made several appearances at The Church, including a 2004 gig with Critters Buggin, a 2005 booking with Drums and Tuba, and other shows as a lone duo. Just last year, Benevento swung through town with Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey bassist Reed Mathis and Critters Buggin drummer Mike Dillon.

Keyboardist Benevento and drummer Russo grew up together in New Jersey and began collaborating as youngsters. The friends parted ways after middle school, attending different high schools and then branching off to different parts of the country. Benevento went to Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he sharpened his jazz skills under the tutelage of several legendary players. Russo shipped off to Boulder, Colo., where he originally intended to study at the University of Colorado. Instead, he joined a band called Fat Mama and began his touring career.

When Russo later moved to New York City, he began playing with some of the former Berklee students Benevento had befriended in Boston.

“We didn’t see each other for about 10 years,” Russo said in a recent phone conversation with The Wire. “Then we just ran into each other in the city in like 2000.”

Striking a quick musical connection, Benevento and Russo began performing as a quartet with a saxophonist and a percussionist, playing regular gigs at a Moroccan restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen. Later, Russo was offered a residency at the Knitting Factory. He was invited to play once a week for a month, at $100 per gig. The decision to hire just one band mate was initially motivated purely by financial reasons. By splitting the bill with Benevento, each musician could take home $50 every week. Due to space constraints, the pair set up onstage facing each other, divided only by Benevento’s keys and Russo’s drum set. They continue to play that way to this day.

Much to the surprise of both musicians, the duo format proved to be highly stimulating and interesting. Word spread that a pair of zany musicians were making huge and unusual sounds at the Knitting Factory, and a residency that was initially intended to last a few weeks stretched on for 10 months, with the Duo reeling in a crowd every Thursday night.

“It was just a couple of guys getting together and improvising every week and making 50 bucks each,” Russo said. “We had no idea that it was gonna be a national band.”

Only after the residency was over and the pair embarked on their first road tour did they really begin to gel. After 10 years apart, the two musicians had developed divergent musical tastes. Although the Duo began as a small jazz act, the artists had to stretch back to their hard rock roots in order to find common ground.

“When Marco and I first started touring together, I think our first common ground at that point was Radiohead,” Russo said. “We got in the car on that first tour and I was going through his CD book, and I’m like ‘What the fuck’s this? What the fuck’s this?’ And then I finally found some Radiohead.”

The influence of groundbreaking innovators like Radiohead can be heard in the Duo’s highly unique style. A melodic mishmash of rock, jazz and electronic, the band makes the most of the instruments at its disposal, layering sonic textures with loops and samples that supplement the music. The musicians use a few technological knick-knacks to produce a fuller sound, such as Benevento’s bass pedals and Russo’s sampler.

“The sampler definitely was the first step to us broadening our sound and being able to have more things going on,” Russo said. “I’ll sample piano notes or keyboard notes from Marco, and I’ll simply turn my sampler into like a nine-note piano so I can play a melody while Marco’s playing a countermelody with one hand, comping with one hand and playing bass with his feet, and I’m playing drums and then maybe a keyboard with my left hand. We’re kind of using everything that we can to get more stuff happening.”

The Duo’s first album, 2005’s “Best Reason to Buy the Sun,” showcases an explosion of sometimes harmonious and sometimes uproarious sounds. Listening to the disc—or seeing the band live—it is difficult to believe two instrumentalists make so much powerful noise.

“That was a big part of our initial buzz, I guess, or small initial success. People were surprised that it was just the two of us making all that sound,” Russo said.

“Buy the Sun” was released on Ropeadope Records, which, at the time, had also signed Phish bassist Mike Gordon. When Gordon went looking for instrumentalists to play on his solo album, someone at the label recommended Benevento and Russo. Gordon went to see the pair play one night and knew he’d hit the jackpot. Subsequent gigs with Gordon yielded the Duo a jam band contingent of fans, and when Trey Anastasio later went hunting for sidemen, Gordon suggested his new friends. Benevento, Russo, Gordon and Anastasio wound up recording and touring as a post-Phish quartet.

Russo said collaborating with veteran performers like Gordon and Anastasio has helped him and Benevento grow as musicians. “You always take away something. The downfall from that tour is I feel like we were just rushed going into it,” Russo said. “That being said, the experience was great.”

Still, Benevento and Russo are at their best as a simple duo. Russo admits that the format sometimes creates challenges, like when they look for a certain tone or sound and can’t find it on drums or keyboard. But, the limits also allow them to expand.

“We’re forced to be creative in a different way than we would be if there were other band members,” Russo said. “Once we started getting into bringing all the extra bells and whistles, like my sampler and Marco’s bass pedals, and really trying to expand the power of the sound coming from two people, on that line, it sparked a lot of creativity.”  

The Duo’s second album, “Play Pause Stop,” came out in 2007, and a number of live recordings have also been released. In live settings, the Duo’s raw energy elicits awe among fans of numerous genres. Russo is a powerhouse drummer with a number of tricks up his sleeve, equally influenced by rock thumpers like John Bonham and Ringo Starr, and jazz legends like Al Foster and Jack DeJohnette. Benevento is sharp and inventive on keys, and he can rarely keep a smile off his face while playing.  

Why do Benevento and Russo have such a magical chemistry onstage?

“I don’t know. It’s weird,” Russo said. “It was shocking to both of us when we first started playing together, how telepathic it was.”

Both of the Benevento-Russo Duo’s shows at The Stone Church begin at 9 p.m. and cost $15 in advance, $18 at the door. For tickets, visit www.thestonechurch.com or call 603-659-6321. Tickets are also available at all Bull Moose locations.