AUSTIN, Texas — How does a farm kid from Wapello County playing drums in a machine shed make it to the big time of indie rock music?

If you ask Jeremy Bruch, it’s simply a desire to play good music all the time.

Bruch is a member of “What Made Milwaukee Famous,” an up and coming band based in Austin, Texas, which has received notice by some music industry insiders and the acclaim of the Austin music scene.

The band’s latest video, “Sultan,” has received numerous hits on the Internet and the band has been touring the country, promoting their latest CD, “What Doesn’t Kill Us.” “Sultan” even features a cameo from famed cyclist Lance Armstrong.

Bruch said his musical career began years ago in that old machine shed banging on the drums.

“I’d pound away on the weekends,” he said during a recent interview with the Courier.

From there, it was his time as a member of the E-B Jazz Band and mentoring from Band Director Joe Overton that made Bruch want to seriously pursue music

Overton “is simply amazing,” said Bruch, who would go to school early and “bash out” on the drums in the school’s band room to practice.

“I really became a big-time jazz drummer,” he said. “I really, really got into it.”

Bruch’s talents on the drums prompted to enter a talent competition at the old Ottumwa Coliseum during high school. He also was a part of the Celebration Iowa Jazz Singers and Band to perform at the Iowa State Fair every summer.

Highly recruited, Bruch was all set to take classes at the University of Northern Iowa. But the night before classes began, Celebration Iowa Director Tony Guzman arranged a scholarship for Bruch at the University of North Texas.

Eventually his time at UNT led him to Austin, which plays host to a potpourri of musical styles and genres.

Over the past 13 years, Bruch performed with more than 40 bands that included music with Middle Eastern influences and Jewish dance music to work with a Romanian punk band.

But Bruch’s latest venture with What Made Milwaukee Famous has given the Iowa native and his band mates more exposure.

“It’s really surreal,” he said. “We’ve played every major festival.”