Schuurman played mostly drums in more than a dozen bands before forming The Market, but his solo project took him in another direction. “One day, my band was on a break, and I just decided to write some songs,” he says. From there, he picked up a guitar and began to write, recording his material on a MacBook in his bedroom for his four-song debut. Schuurman played all the instruments as well as produced and mixed the EP, which was originally released under the name Industry Company Incorporated (another wink at the music industry). While the EP is very raw (a fact that Bryan blames on not getting it mastered), there is undeniable talent in the lyrical arrangements.
This strong impression of The Market found its way to X96, where it was played not only on Live & Local, but also on Todd Nuke’Em’s “Todd’s iPod” segment. “The first thing that caught me was his lyrics. Nuke’Em says he certainly has something to say, and he conveys this in his music in a way that relates to this generation,” “It was interesting to be exposed to Bryan’s darker, more thoughtful side.”
Radio exposure led The Market, now padded with current members Danny Wariner, Anthony Webster, Brent Redd and Scotty Moses, to a spot on last summer’s X96 4-Play local concert series. “It was a great response for a fairly new band,” Live & Local host and City Weekly contributor Portia Early recalls. “I’d say about 40 kids came to see them.” While The Market didn’t go on to open for X96’s Big Ass Show, they did well for a bunch of newbies.
Catching up with the band as they performed a set in Ogden, they joked around, giving the impression of a band much tighter than their brief years together might suggest. Of course, they’re not coasting yet. “I’m recording a couple new songs, and I’ve just been jamming with these guys to catch them up to speed,” Schuurman says.
“We also played a hoe-down in someone’s back yard,” Moses says with a laugh. “It was a neighborhood party, but it was fun.” Better yet, the party attracted more than a few new fans.
“We had a lot more MySpace people talking to us, telling us we did a good job at the Big Ass Show,” Schuurman says.
“I think there’s a lot more song recognition going on at our shows,” Wariner adds. “People are starting to know what songs we’re playing and grooving to the music.”
Fans are just perks, however, to the pleasures gained from performing. They play full speed ahead, which obviously gets the crowd riled up. Sometimes, though, “You have to fake it,” Schuurman says. “I never fake it,” Redd says. “Fake it till you make it,” Moses says, “unless you’re Brent.”
As for the future, Schuurman has it all laid out. “I’m gonna try and record some more later this year, get some money saved up for that,” he says, adding that the band won’t be in on the act. “Right now, I have a super-sweet deal where I have to do it in studio by myself—plus, it would take three times as long.”
“Probably because of the attitude problems, I guess,” Redd says.
Thankfully, there’s no faking The Market’s promising road ahead.
