Feature Music

Scott Martin & The Grand Disaster: A New Yorker’s Resilient Journey Through Music and Life

Branded Content

September 26, 2023

Hailing from Brooklyn, New York, Scott Martin is redefining sound. In the ever-evolving world of music, some artists rise to prominence with ease, while others, like Martin, carve their own unique paths through unwavering determination and relentless commitment to their craft.

Today, we explore the remarkable journey of a five-borough musician who defies the odds with classic New York grit. His latest musical endeavor, “Scott Martin & The Grand Disaster” is a testament to the enduring power of music – even in the face of life’s most daunting challenges. Almost from the start, Martin’s voyage through the music industry has been anything other than ordinary.

Scott Martin & The Grand Disaster: A New Yorker’s Resilient Journey Through Music and Life — Sourced photo

“I’m a career journeyman musician that has always kept going” Scott says, reflecting upon his history of numerous setbacks. What distinguishes him is his refusal to surrender, regardless of the obstacles that have crossed his path. His new album encapsulates this energy to a T – it was conceived and produced during a tumultuous period marked by significant life changes, not to mention the formidable challenges the pandemic of 2020 posed to musicians everywhere.

Even from his early days in the industry, the seas were rough and unpredictable. The way he began his music career was somewhat unorthodox – he had been attempting to walk the straight and narrow, but was unceremoniously halted in his tracks by a perfect storm of circumstance. His dying mother was fading quickly, home life was a mess, and then it happened that the bureaucracy, greed, and red tape of the higher education industry stepped in and scattered any remaining thoughts of a “normal” life to the wind.

“I was studying to be a history teacher at the time (my other and oldest passion), but due to the fact that certain financial aid forms were turned into my school a few days late due to the crisis unfolding my in home life (I should have just forged my father’s signature, but I was young and naive at the time). Hofstra didn’t like that, so they froze my transcripts until such time that I paid them an entire semester’s tuition in full (at the time, 13k). Well, when you’re living in an old Camry, that’s not going to happen, so I swore to “fuck higher education” then and there, and resolved that I would decide my fate with my own two hands and my guitar. I’m stubborn; I’m obstinate, and I never went back to school, even when I finally could have. Fuck those people.” All this had come while living in a Toyota Camry, bills piled up after losing his mother to breast cancer, putting Scott, his father, and his sister out of their home.

“My Dad used to play, you know – I learned on his old guitar. ” Scott reminisced on growing up in the Empire State.

“When things went to shit and we lost everything, the funny coincidence to that all was that my first band, Bulletproof Messenger was cutting our sophomore album in a big fancy studio, we’d gotten international recognition, and I thought maybe that was gonna be it, might be the golden ticket — I just had to hang in there a bit longer (alas, it wasn’t, and the band fizzled out soon after our second album). Dad was moving upstate to try and put himself back together and before he left, he gave me his guitar and said “you should have this – you’re going to make more music on it than I ever have and ever could.” Scott was able to return the favor many years later, “Full circle – a few Decembers ago he called and said “I was thinking about playing again, you think I should buy a cheap one ‘n’ knock around on it?” I secretly took his, got it restored and fixed up real good, and then gave it to him for Christmas. I wrote a lot of great songs on that guitar, (including quite a few on this record), but it was wonderfully fulfilling to see it back where it belonged.”

Speaking of this record, the term “Grand Disaster” is the title single cut from Bulletproof Messenger’s sophomore album, “Arm Yourself.”

“I loved it – our lead singer Marcus had some really great lyrics on that one. And you know, he was right – you can be a Grand Disaster. So when it was time to gather a band and make a record, that really kept popping into the forefront of my mind as a moniker I wanted to use. And, as fate would somehow have it, the drummer from Bulletproof Messenger, Joe Rubino, wound up being the drummer on this record, many years later. He also photographed and helped engineer the album art. Crazy talented guy and one of my best friends.”

“Scott Martin & The Grand Disaster” represents a chronological odyssey through Martin’s life over the past few years. Each track on the album mirrors a distinct chapter in his life—an embodiment of resilience and the human experience. From the highs and lows of love to the profound impact of the 2020 pandemic on the music industry, Martin’s music encapsulates the full spectrum of emotions and experiences that life offers. Scott Martin’s career boasts remarkable achievements, including sharing stages with acclaimed acts such as Incubus, Collective Soul, Seether, Fuel, Karnivool, Candlebox, and The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Earlier this year, he released a guitar-centric rendition of Ennio Morricone’s theme song from “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly,” amassing over 6 million views and counting.

Rather than shying away from challenges, Martin urges artists to confront them head-on, recognizing that they are integral to the creative process.

“My partner of ten years and I called it quits,” he explained of another catalyst in the record’s conception. “That was rough. I’m out there in NYC and I mean, it’s a wild place, and I’m all kinds of messed up. I’m saying yes to everything, experiencing it all, not really knowing who I am as a single person in their thirties.”

An introspective and reflective character, Scott remembers the past and never forgets – but always keeps one eye firmly fixed towards the future. He envisions a world where his name resonates with reverence within the annals of rock ‘n’ roll. His dreams include performing on all seven continents, with a particular yearning to grace the stage in Antarctica and the Bowery Ballroom. He aspires to collaborate with the esteemed producer Butch Walker and dreams of a headline performance at Glastonbury, an event that certainly embodies the surreal magic of music.

“When I started to really, finally realize that you know, life is a mess, and it’s hard, but it’s glorious and beautiful all at the same time. And I just started writing about it, working on songs that I didn’t really PLAN on being a journal of my life and experience”

Scott Martin’s journey, artfully narrated through “Scott Martin & The Grand Disaster,” embodies a story of resilience, tenacity, and the transformative potential of music. His career stands as a testament to the enduring spirit of an artist who refuses to succumb to life’s grand disasters. Through his music and life experiences, Scott Martin inspires us all to embrace challenges, pursue our dreams, and find the rhythm of our own resilient journey in life.