For Marie Catastrophe, lead singer and guitar player in A Louder Disaster, a career in music wasn’t always a sure thing. She tried being a drummer in grade school, but that wasn’t a fit. When she was 15, her Gram bought her an acoustic guitar. Since no one in her family was into music, she taught herself to play, but really focused on buying herself a decent computer. McAllen, Texas wasn’t offering a girl with a guitar OR computer the opportunities she wanted, so Marie pawned the computer, bought an electric and amp, packed the acoustic and two pairs of pants and left for Los Angeles. “I knew I’d be a guitar player in LA,” she remembers.
While busking on Hollywood Blvd., Marie starting writing original music, honing her voice and building and fan base. She moved on to open mics, where she met M. Todd Bishop. Todd had been a member of the short-lived but acclaimed band Swamp Boogie Queen, and had experience in studio and on the road. He found Marie “a cool check with a great vibe” and the two joined forces to finesse Marie’s songs and get in the studio, with Todd also on bass.
With demos completed and a band in place, they started making the rounds in legendary LA clubs like The Troubadour, The Whiskey and Spaceland, and did a couple short tours. Sadly, the band was also subject to some less-than-ethical business people, and with lessons learned the hard way, Marie took control of the band, cleaned house, and started fresh with A Louder Disaster.
With the addition of drummer Trey D., who’s been playing since eighth grade, A Louder Disaster has just released their first EP, “The Sweet Sound of Revenge Songs.” Inspired by psycho coworkers, uncommitted musicians, endless hours toiling at work and The Alkaline Trio, “Revenge Songs” was produced by an unlikely but super-skilled artist, Scott Patton (music director for award-winning band Sugarland).
