About The Band Members
The Story of The Consumers
Joe says to Mark sitting at the bar in Miyako’s. (Spartanburg, SC – December 2005):
“Hey man we could play a gig here. You want to start a band? I’ll sing, you on bass…
I know Andrew will play keys… What about Casey?”
Mark responds:
“Yeah, I bet he’d do it if his girlfriend’s cool with it. I think he’s out of town right now, but call him anyway.”
Joe immediately calls a very inebriated Casey Burgess:
“Hey Casey we’re going to start a band and we already have a gig at Miyako’s. Me, Andrew, you, and Mark. You want to do it?”
The exact words of Casey’s reply are not known, however a practice was scheduled and Casey was reminded of this a couple of days after the phone call.
The four of us gathered at Mark’s house for practice. We played Coldplay’s “Clocks” and it worked. Nothing to it – the pieces fit. Casey’s girlfriend came over for a listen, and it still worked, but better this time. With her approval, we were a band. Not only that, we were a band with a gig. The official bio starts here…
Formed in December of 2005, our 4 original members - Mark Miller, Casey Burgess, Andrew Smith and Joe Power - banded together for a one-time, ten-song performance at Miyako Sushi Group in Spartanburg, SC. Somehow, through no advertisement, the place was absolutely packed. The music was mediocre at best – we played Elvis Presley’s “Blue Christmas”… and Casey sang! Enough said. A couple of months later, with the addition of guitarist Wes Gosnell and 30+ ear-catching covers, we began scheduling regular gigs in our hometown of Spartanburg before hitting the road to Charleston and Myrtle Beach in the months to come. The past several years have been steady with gigs at local hang-outs like Sonny’s Brick Oven Pizza, Club 229, Mad River Bar & Grill, Wild Wings of Spartanburg, The Cellar, Lil’ Dz, and many more - traveling as far as Murfreesboro, TN to get our sound out.
These shows helped refine our skills as a cover band but more importantly gave us the opportunity to explore our own sound through writing and recording original music. After months of discovery and collaboration we released our first self-titled EP in March of 2008. All five songs began on piano, with each band member gradually shaping the music with his own instrument, personality, and creative input. In December of 2008, Louis Meyers stepped in to fill our keyboard vacancy, completing the line-up and making immediate musical contributions. Our most recent release, Profiteering, is the full-length album we’ve been working on and saving our money for the past two years – and a creation we’re proud to hang our hats on.
We’ve collectively drawn influence from such artists as The Beatles, Radiohead, Jeff Buckley, Red Hot Chili Peppers, CCR and anything else that wouldn’t quite fit together in a mix-tape. Since our beginnings as a cover band, we’ve wanted to attempt the unexpected, and this same attitude shapes the way our original music sounds. We want to take our listeners on an emotional rollercoaster within individual songs and throughout a collection – whether it’s a recorded album or a live show. We all, by far, prefer creative expression to pop sensibility. Some of the best things are interesting because they don’t make sense at first. We enjoy being thrown for that loop, and in turn try to throw others.
In late September 2010, Wes quit the band. In January 2011, Daniel Collins filled the lead guitar vacancy - helping to craft new material and improve the flavor of the old.
So you might want to see us live you say? Well, you’re in luck because we love playing live. It’s real, it’s loud… it’s real loud. We’re not always perfect – we blow fuses and spill beer, sometimes a guitar breaks and the rhythm shakes. But we give it everything every time. Guaranteed. We look forward to melting your face very soon. Viva Consumers!
Joe, Mark, Casey, Louis, & Daniel
- The Consumers
