Members of Bull Market joined Jack Armstrong for KGNU’s Smash It Back! for a conversation about their latest album, Nature of Business, the realities of independent record releases, and the band’s evolving sound. Along the way, the Billings, Montana-based group discussed the influences behind their music, from punk and noise rock to hip-hop and pop, and reflected on the unique DIY culture that shaped them.
The band also shared stories behind their cover of the Wet song “Kill ID” and looked ahead to a busy summer, including Midwest tour dates, a performance at Billings’ Amp Camp youth music program, and the 12th annual Julia Louise Dry Fest, which members of the band help organize. They also revealed they’re working on new material, with plans to continue writing and recording later this year. (Air Date 6/5/26).
Listen to the interview here:
Transcript:
Jack Armstrong: I’m here in the studio with Bull Market. Hi, Bull Market.
Bull Market: Hi. Hello.
Jack Armstrong: Hey. I’m also here with friends, too. Friends can yell.
Friends: Hi!
Jack Armstrong: Good stuff. First and foremost, Bull Market, could you introduce yourselves so the audience knows who they’re hearing from?
Bull Market: I’m Phil.
Bull Market: I’m Stephen.
Bull Market: I’m Nels.
Jack Armstrong: Say it with your chest.
Bull Market: I’m Nels.
Bull Market: That’s just how he talks.
Jack Armstrong: You guys just played a show at Unit 5, one of Boulder’s premier DIY venues.
Bull Market: No, that didn’t happen.
Jack Armstrong: Tell me it happened. I couldn’t have hallucinated it because it was that good.
Bull Market: It was all fake. We hired all those people to be there. They’re all actors. That wasn’t actually us.
Jack Armstrong: Somebody close that door. I can hear you, Phil.
Bull Market: This is also confidential.
Jack Armstrong: All right, calm it down. This is my radio show.
Since you won’t admit you played Unit 5, here’s my first question: did you play Unit 5?
Bull Market: We did.
Jack Armstrong: You did?
Bull Market: Some version of us did. It was great.
Jack Armstrong: I could have sworn it was you guys.
Bull Market: It was great.
Jack Armstrong: Does your investment firm feel like an investment family? How does it feel?
Bull Market: We always say, “When you’re here, you’re family.” We really do consider this a family company. We try to keep it wholesome and encourage people to be good citizens and raise good citizens.
Bull Market: It is still business, though. And money.
Jack Armstrong: First and foremost, right?
Bull Market: Family values and money.
Jack Armstrong: The family value is money. What does it take for a firm to get to that level?
Bull Market: A lot of trial and error. Ups and downs, you could say.
Bull Market: Diversifying our portfolio was a big step. We’re pushing index funds right now, which is something everybody can get behind.
Bull Market: Ground floor. It’s good.
Jack Armstrong: In a world where artificial intelligence is shrinking the corporate workforce, are you worried your music is also on the chopping block as fewer people relate to corporate life?
Bull Market: AI was on stage tonight at Unit 5. That wasn’t even us.
Bull Market: We’re embracing the change.
Jack Armstrong: Be real with me. Is this AI right now?
Bull Market: Could be.
Bull Market: I think AI stands for art.
Jack Armstrong: So…
Bull Market: It’s really just A.
Bull Market: Also, thanks for letting us come here and be jerks.
Jack Armstrong: I appreciate that. I’m writing these questions being a jerk.
Bull Market: Do you want us to be serious about AI?
Jack Armstrong: I have something coming up where you can be serious if you want.
Bull Market: It’s not good.
Jack Armstrong: Fair enough.
Now I want to talk about your latest album, Nature of Business. Before it hit streaming services, it was only available as a digital purchase on Bandcamp. Was that staggered release intentional?
Bull Market: We didn’t come here to talk about schedules.
Jack Armstrong: I thought there was something political about it.
Bull Market: No. We were broke and saving for vinyl.
Bull Market: There was also a lot of paperwork and logistics involved.
Bull Market: We wanted people to have it as fast as possible. We just didn’t have the means to produce physical copies immediately.
Bull Market: Vinyl cost us a few thousand dollars. We wanted to release the album while also saving up for a vinyl pressing, and it took about six more months.
Bull Market: Besides, six months ago AI wasn’t writing songs as fast as it is now.
Jack Armstrong: You guys didn’t have the Pro model.
Bull Market: Exactly.
Jack Armstrong: Journalism is so much easier now.
I wanted to ask about Nature of Business. I hear sounds from both of your previous records, Work Week and Broker. Is it helpful to be flexible with genre when your thematic through-line is anti-greed satire?
Bull Market: We’re an investment firm.
Jack Armstrong: Fair.
For example, Broker had some indie-rock moments, and I hear echoes of those on songs like “Smoke and Blades” and “Stubborn.” Work Week had longer, brooding songs, and I hear some of that in “Ballad of Jimmy Blevins.”
Bull Market: That’s cool to hear from an outside perspective. I don’t think we’ve ever consciously thought about it that way.
Bull Market: We don’t really set out to write in a specific genre. It just kind of happens.
Bull Market: I love hanging out with you because I don’t even listen to our records. You’re making me think about them.
Jack Armstrong: That’s my job.
Bull Market: It’s a cool question because it points out that we can be flexible. I’d like us to become even more flexible. We started as a louder, more straightforward rock band with songs like “Grenada Homes,” where it was all about energy and going for it. But we all listen to lots of different kinds of music, and it’s fun to bring those influences into the band.
Jack Armstrong: I’ve been trying to get people to invest in Bull Market, and a lot of people hear influences from different bands. Do you have any influences you’re willing to name?
Bull Market: Absolutely. That’s just how music works.
Bull Market: Pissed Jeans is definitely an influence.
Bull Market: There’s a band called Bust that nobody knows but everybody should know.
Bull Market: We have lots of friend bands that influence us, too.
Bull Market: I listen to a lot of rap and hip-hop.
Bull Market: I like ’50s girl groups like the Ronettes.
Bull Market: I like Charli XCX.
Jack Armstrong: Everybody yell if you like Charli XCX.
(Silence.)
Jack Armstrong: There’s actually nobody out there. I’m talking to AI.
Bull Market: Make a crowd sound.
Jack Armstrong: In the next part of our conversation we’re going to talk about Billings, Montana, your upcoming tour, and whatever else you’ve got going on.
Bull Market: You’re keeping us around?
Jack Armstrong: I’d hang out with you forever.
Before we listen to “Apricity” off Nature of Business, anything you’d like to say about it?
Bull Market: It’s pretty good.
Bull Market: Thanks, Jack.
[Song plays]
Jack Armstrong: Bull Market is still hanging out in the KGNU studio. How are you feeling?
Bull Market: Pretty good. I just had a chocolate protein shake and an orange.
Jack Armstrong: Sounds old.
I promised we’d talk about Billings, Montana. There’s a track on Nature of Business called “Kill ID” that’s a cover of a song by another Billings band. Tell me about the influence of Billings and why you chose that song.
Bull Market: That’s a song originally by a band called Wet. There’s a guy in Billings named Josh Hurst who’s been part of the scene for about 30 years through bands like Kronk and Jam vs. Jam.
The first time I saw Wet, Josh sang most of the set from inside a bass drum. It was one of those moments where I thought, “If I ever start a band, I want it to be like that.”
That song stayed with me for years, and eventually this felt like the right group to cover it.
Bull Market: Nels has always been a big supporter of covering local music that’s meaningful to us.
Jack Armstrong: Since this show focuses on local music scenes, what other Billings bands should people know about?
Bull Market: There are plenty. We can definitely point you toward some great Billings music.
Jack Armstrong: We’re going to play “Kill ID” later, but before that, tell me more about Billings itself.
Bull Market: We’re all from there.
Bull Market: Our band is kind of a three-generation band. Nels is the grandpa, I’m the dad, and Stephen is the kid.
Bull Market: Billings has a strong little scene. Thanks to bands that Nels and others have been involved with over the years, there’s a lot of community.
Bull Market: It’s a small scene, but it’s robust. People show up for shows.
Jack Armstrong: What do you mean by robust?
Bull Market: Billings is a working city. People are busy. They have jobs, families, responsibilities. You might not see someone for months, but they’ll show up at a show.
Every show feels like a gathering of people who know each other well. It’s a rotating community.
Bull Market: Billings is also pretty industrial. It has an edge to it.
Bull Market: And because it’s somewhat isolated, the DIY scene tends to get really weird and creative. Bands don’t feel pressure to fit into any particular mold.
Jack Armstrong: In our last ten minutes, let’s talk about what’s next. You’re playing with Blood Oath and Monkey Man tomorrow at Squirm Gallery and continuing your Midwest tour through June 14. What else is on the docket?
Bull Market: We have a little cabin near Red Lodge outside Billings where we like to write and record.
Bull Market: We just spent some time there working on new material.
Bull Market: We’re cooking up new songs.
Bull Market: We also want to plug Dry Fest.
Bull Market: Before that, we’re playing Amp Camp, a kids’ music camp in Billings. It’s a really cool program where kids learn how to start bands, and we get to perform for them.
Jack Armstrong: You guys are playing a kids’ music camp?
Bull Market: Absolutely.
Bull Market: We just make a few lyrical adjustments.
Jack Armstrong: Fair enough.
Bull Market: We also want to mention Julia Louise Dry Fest in Billings. It’s a DIY festival we’ve helped organize.
It’s happening August 6–9 and this year marks its 12th anniversary.
We bring in touring bands, local bands, and a whole community of people. It’s one big weekend-long celebration and one of the highlights of the year in Billings.
Jack Armstrong: Sounds like the place to be.
Bull Market: We’d like to think so.
