Busch and his good friend Eric Kufs formed the morbid party called Common Rotation in their high school days. Busch had experienced a musical awakening at hearing Elvis Costello; thinking he was the only one (as Costello fans seem to do), Busch was surprised to hear Kufs was also a fan. That and a shared love of folk music forged a bond between the two and a relentlessly prolific collaboration that continues to this day. Their tunes were funny and sad in equal doses - consummately existential, smart but not pretentiously literate.

They began playing coffeehouses, hitting every open mic night in the Tri-State area - originally, cultivating a following among the venues folk-friendly denizens. These morphed into regular gigs at the same places, weekends at larger clubs in New York City, and eventual opening dates with friends and benefactors They Might Be Giants. During that time, they released a quickie album (titled Common Rotation, but credited to "28 Orange Street"). It did well for them, but Busch says it was when he and Kufs moved to California - and donned the Common Rotation as a moniker (partly due to their revolving-door rhythm section) that they began work on the album they both envisioned: The Big Fear.

They rented a big house and set about writing and recording three albums worth of material, from which ten tracks were chosen (Note: the rest weren't to languish; the band has a full-disclosure policy, making new rehearsals, demos and live takes available on CommonRotation.com every two days and sprinkling them throughout their constantly changing set list). The environment, Busch says, was especially conducive to creativity, and resulted in the album they've both envisioned since their salad days, a marriage of pop sensibilities and the communal, inclusive aura of folk.Â

They tour extensively and has released a handful of CDs: The Big Fear, 28 Orange Street, The Hotel Cafe, Live @ The Bitter End.

by www.songwriting.net