Lorson and Coté have also created the original scores to several films, notably HBO's documentary What Remains: The Life and Work of Sally Mann, and in 2008, they released an album with Kathy Ziegler as the Piano Creeps.
Madder Rose was formed in 1991 in a Greenwich Village apartment, after Billy Coté, the band's songwriter, was informed by a mutual friend that a woman named Mary Lorson was looking for a project.
"[4] The band's ascent to relative fame was secured when they landed a main-stage appearance at the 1993 Reading Festival,[2][5] and by the critical acclaim Bring it Down received shortly after its release, including reviews in the Chicago Tribune, and being ranked as one of the top 10 albums of the year by the College Media Journal.
[9] Their sound progressed from indie pop rock, not unlike peers Velocity Girl, Lush, Helium, and Juliana Hatfield, to shoegaze and trip-hop.
After the breakup, Lorson founded the alt-folk outfit Saint Low, which featured Coté on guitar and production duties, releasing its eponymous debut in 2000.
Coté released the album Amateur Soul Surgery in 2000, and two 12" singles as The Jazz Cannon with vocalist Don Greene, which also feature vocal contributions from Lorson.