The inspiration for Wild Rust goes back to Nov. 2019 when husband & wife Mark Gusick and Margo Gusick became deeply moved by the stories of early American folk/country groups. This was their motivation to start the band. Then Covid happened. Fortunately, the shutdowns didn't hinder their sound's development, as they would regularly meet up with friends and future bandmates to jam for hours.

Marcus von Rittberg was born in Spain and grew up in Germany where he began studying piano at a young age. His passion for composition and production brought him to the US where he earned his degree in 'Music Production & Audio Engineering' at the 'Institute of Production & Recording' in Minneapolis. 
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In 2007 Marcus moved to Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. He got heavily involved in teaching piano and music classes in the local community, focusing on those families, schools and kindergartens that struggled to allocate funds for the arts. Most of his engineering clients were local hip-hop artists. In 2009, Marcus self-released the concept albums 'Lyrical Pieces', 'A Night Out' and 'Revolution of Love' under the pseudonym 'Master of Con?usion', leading to various licensing opportunities.
 
During the following years he started performing in NYC while continuously writing and recording new material. In 2015 Marcus released 'Growing Younger', his latest self-produced release and first album using his given name. Shortly after, he relocated to Los Angeles where he continues to perform, compose, produce, engineer and teach.
 
As a singer-songwriter, Marcus draws from many genres. His melodic and harmonic progressions reveal Marcus’ love for jazz, Latin and classical music. The rhythmical elements in his productions expose Marcus’ passion for electronic and hip-hop music. He casually weaves together diverse musical elements, bringing forth a very eclectic yet catchy style of music. As a producer, Marcus paints from a wide palette of acoustic and electronic sounds that complement his heartfelt love songs, observant narratives and satirical social commentaries.

Jesse MacLeod has been given the gift of a naturally distinctive, soulful voice. Having grown up in the North Torrance district of South Los Angeles County, he first found his love for the microphone when he started going to shows in the LA underground hip hop scene at 16 years old. He knew he wanted to be an emcee the first time he heard Slug of Atmosphere on a mix CD and saw LA hip hop legends Freestyle Fellowship perform live.

He began spitting rhymes in ciphers (freestyle rap circles) at house parties and school. This eventually led to him rocking microphones at house parties and by the time he reached college, he was performing regularly in small clubs in the Los Angeles and Orange County underground hip hop scene.

It wasn’t until he turned 23 that he picked up a guitar for the first time. When he did, something changed; the guitar, singing and songwriting became an obsession and within a year he had transitioned into a Roots/Americana/Soul singer-songwriter. This abrupt change in musical direction led him to be influenced by the likes of such artists as Jason Isbell, Chris Stapleton and Amos Lee.

Being the son of famed bluesman Doug MacLeod, Jesse began absorbing the sound of Blues, Soul and Jazz at a young age. Vinyl records from greats such as Albert King, Donny Hathaway and Kenny Burrell played regularly through the stereo of his childhood home. The culmination of these vast influences are all clearly apparent in him today.

In 2011, Jesse had the honor of having his song “As The Summer Wanes” placed on an episode of NBC’s The Voice and has released two commercial recordings: In Between Homes (2010) and Red Flags (2012.) He now spends his time performing regularly in the Los Angeles singer/songwriter scene and cowriting with other songwriters. He makes his living performing at colleges, weddings and private events across the country.

Short-lived pseudo-punk post-grunge power trio that tore up basements all over Manhattan.

Get more Billy Z Duke solo and band-based music at the links below!

Drew Merlin, Sean Casual, and Sky-Bird. Point blank period.

acoustic ukulele music. honest and vulnerable lyrics. basically, pieces of my soul in musical form. babies born of my musical womb.

BilBoBurke > Barefoot Claire & Billy Z Duke > The Return of The Tongue > NAKED > Your Mother > Most Peculiar Mama > The Çhicàgø Máñüal ôf ST¥LE > The Wrong Windows -- NJ > UK > NJ > NYC > LA > SF > NJ > LA

Resuscitating songsmithery, reupholstering the zeitgeist, proving that rock & roll doesn't have to die before, during, or after you get old... Order the Deluxe Vinyl Box of our debut album Days of Yore at our Bandcamp link!

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