Name; Curt Taylor (aka, Curt Hell)
Age; 30’s
Bands; Pure Hell (1996-1997), Buttonhook (2000-2003), Smash Machine (2006-
present)
Role in Band; Les Paul pounding and Marshall frying. (Guitar)
How did it all begin? I started really playing seriously in high school, and took
right to playing and partying. I loved that the two seemed to go together. After
graduating, I moved to L.A. and developed my chops and a drug habit. It is a time
of my life that I would never change. Being in L.A. in the late 80’s was the
experience of a lifetime. I did move back home, and played in several local Philly
bands for many years, without much fanfare. I just knew that this is what I wanted to
do, and was driven toward a goal. I was attracted to everything about being a
guitar player, plus the fact that I was not a virtuoso did not slow things down.
Everyone has a place in Rock N’ Roll. I met Spider, The drummer from Pure Hell,
and we hit it off instantly. They were looking at putting a version of the band back
together, and he had just negotiated a deal. When he asked me to come aboard, I
was like “Fuck yeah!” That started a wild chapter in my life. Unfortunately, Spider
is no longer with us, but I still to this day remain close with Stinker, the singer, and
even recorded some killer stuff with him last summer.
Who were your original influences? Alcohol, Greg Ginn, Slash, Dr. Know, Pot,
Rocky George, Cocaine, John Christ, & Ecstacy
Who are your current influences? I like anything good that I hear that I can
incorporate into my playing. I like a lot of the heavier playing.
What is your proudest moment as a musician? Playing a show with Dope in
Delphos, Ohio and getting reviews that we ruled that night.
What is your most embarrassing moment as a musician? Being on stage for
me is about acting crazy and taking risks, so slightly embarrassing things happen all
of the time. The trick is to not look embarrassed and make it seem like you meant
to do that. I was in a show in high school, where the drummer was so psyched that
he slowly pushed his high hat and kick drum off of the riser. That sucked. If a
friend did not come out of the audience and put the stuff back, we probably would
have just stood there looking like the wasted amateurs that we were. Lol.
What do you think would have been your path through life if you had never
gotten involved with music? Dope dealing junkie with a very long rap sheet. Lol.
Tell us something about you that few people are aware of. That I love to do
yard work, and play Scrabble.
When you look back on your musical path to this point. What are your
deepest regrets? Jumping at a few “pie in the sky” offers, and regretting them.
Signing shit that I should not have. Those kinds of things really soured me to the
business side of this thing, and made me not really want to make music for a while.
If you had the opportunity to start over, what would you change? My
intelligence level as it relates to the reality of the record business. Not leaping at
everything that sounds cool.
Who has been the most influential person in your life and why? In life, that
would be my mother and my wife. Both keep me grounded in different ways.
Musically I would have to say Preston Nash. He has given me incredible input and
advice based on his own musical journey. He has always been there to lend a
hand, and his list of accomplishments wows me. I am very proud to call him a friend.
Please summarize the highlights & lowlights of your musical career. The
highlight was signing my first record deal, and the lowlight was signing my first
record deal. After I realized what was in the contract, and the total lack of support, I
wanted to hang myself. I said “this is not fuckin’ rock n’ roll”.
What are your thoughts on the current "Punk" scene? I don’t know. I am
kind of old school. I was thrilled to hear that Bad Brains are putting out a new
album. That is cool. I am not really up on the current “scene”, but there are some
bands that I hear that are newer that really kick ass. I probably should be more
open to the newer music. On how much it has changed, again, I am not too sure,
because I have really changed. I still have the same nature, but life has shown me
many paths, and they are not all FTW. Those were some great times though. Kids
and punk will always go together. I see a lot of my daughter’s friends into skating
and things like that, and it takes me back to Riding BMX, and skating to Suicidal,
Black Flag, and Bad Brains.
What are your plans musically in the future? Playing live and recording with
my band Smash Machine (www.myspace.com/thesmashmachine), and writing and
performing on some different projects with my friends. I have been very fortunate,
and consider myself very blessed to know the people that I do and to be able to
contribute something to music. Thanks so much to everyone for asking me to be a
part of this.
