Marriage, love and rock and roll? Mark Talley is not your typical rock star, but tells Culture Uncut why 2013 will be the best year of his life so far.
Mark Talley is ready for a life-changing year in 2013If ever there was a band that epitomised the notion of sex, drugs and rock and roll – and we'll forgive the grammatical faux pas in that age-old saying – it was Blood of Wecz. Rumoured to ingest more cocaine than food or drink on their numerous world tours, the band's collective reputation went before them, keeping the drug dealers in business and giving their groupies an almost constant supply of cock for the best part of 15 years.
Among it all though, amongst the chaos and the the cliched way of life that Scott RH, Ryan Lee, Alex P and Eirik Latvallah set their sights on for the most part of their career, was a black sheep, a lone crusader who stood strong in his own idea of what life should be like, his only vices being a rigorous practice schedule on his beloved guitar and the occasional cigarette, completely legal, to clear his mind and reduce the stress of living with some of the most debaucherous men on earth. The fact that he kept his virginity throughout the entirety of a decade-long career with a metal band that really embraced the attitude we come to expect really encapsulates all that Mark Talley is; he thinks for himself, he writes his own story, and he walks his own path where no one can tell him what to do.
To look at the man, you would think for all intents and purposes that he had never gone near a metal concert in his life, far less played guitar in some of the most raucous venues around the globe, sweat spilling, grown men thundering into each other at frightening pace with scant regard for their own health. Mark's baby face makes him look even younger than his tender 24 years, and his quiet and timid nature when we meet make me wonder if I've come to interview the right guy. Surely this leather jacket wearing, rather attractive but kind natured young gent can't have been Scott RH's right hand man for so many years?
It's not until we start to discuss music that his natural shields come down. He seems to relax, and his love for his art form pours out. This is a man who, without doubt, is in this game because he just lives for music. This is a guy for whom music was never a means to make money and meet girls.
“I'm just happy to be back doing the thing I love,” he tells me with a smile. “Music is in my blood, and I've felt for my whole life that there's nothing that I can truly do that will ever make me feel as good about myself as when I play my music.”
He talks about his career with such a vigour that he says has been reaffirmed in recent months. Cast out almost onto the scrap heap by the break up of Blood of Wecz, Talley had to work out who he was, where his own career lay, and how he was going to attack it. As it happens, the guitarist has found it rather easily. Dropping the metal stylings that won him worldwide acclaim, as well as millions of dollars, to start afresh as an indie artist, opening himself up to an all-new genre, and being thrust into the limelight at the same time, something which surprisingly does not make the unassuming young man too nervous or worried.
“Sure, if you asked me to stand up on a stage and deliver a speech, I'd probably break down and cry or something. I've never been one for public speaking at all, and I reckon I'd crack within seconds. It's a different story when I have my guitar in hand though. I have a confidence when I'm behind my guitar. I believe in what I'm doing, and I know that I put my all into it. I think it's a conviction like that that allows you to stand tall and proud in life. If I didn't think my music was the best I could do, then it wouldn't be going out there, I can promise that much.”
Talley's conviction and confidence as well as his enthusiasm for all he does is rather infectious. He may have just been snapped up by a major label and gained a boss who is the most extravagant, rich and flashy in the business, but the guy seems to be oblivious to it all. I've met many a rocker over the years, but in Mark Talley is the one who I can truly say really does seem like he only cares about his music.
The year starts in earnest for Mark Talley this Sunday evening. Shedding his band for the first time, he will stand on a stage at Star Factory to debut his new single, Silver Linings, before it gets released just moments after the show ends. But it will just be the start for him. A tour, a full solo album, and promises of yet more dedication are there for the young guitarist, and that's just professionally. In the spring, the former metal hero is due to settle his private life as well, as he ties the knot with TricJam Records owner Layla Raine, showing that sometimes the good guy does get the girl, and vindicating his decision to stay away from the attitude his previous bandmates had towards women.
“I guess I was just waiting all those years for the right woman to come along. I believe in love stories though, and my own came true for real. I knew from the moment I met Layla that she was a special girl, and I fell in love very quickly. It just felt so right. I look forward to the day she becomes my wife. This is set to be a big year for me, but nothing that happens will come close to the happiness I'll feel when Layla and I are married. I'm a very lucky man.”
