M.C. Taylor

M.C. Taylor, Durham-based musical omnivore, birthed the folk rock band, Hiss Golden Messenger. “At once firmly steeped in tradition and immediately accessible” (NPR), Hiss Golden Messenger calls up a wide spectrum of American vernacular music, from Archie Brownlee to the Staple Singers, from Van Morrison to Townes Van Zandt. HGM was technically born back in California, where a young Taylor dabbled in hardcore punk, indie rock, folk, and country rock while he was a student at University of California-Santa Barbara. HGM truly came to fruition, however, as a Southern project during Taylor’s days in a small rental home in Pittsboro, NC, out near Haw River. Taylor also graduated from the UNC-Chapel Hill folklore graduate program and worked at Duke’s very own Center for Documentary Studies, but is now committed full time to HGM.