Born in Longview, Texas, Monte Pittman is a guitarist best known as Madonna's long-standing live bandleader, having joined her touring operation in 2001, while also serving as bassist and composer for Prong and later Ministry. His solo career, launched with The Deepest Dark in 2009, explores hard rock and heavy metal, with seven albums released including the concurrent 2018 releases Between the Space and Better or Worse, which demonstrated the range of his songwriting across aggressive and acoustic styles.