The Sexual Side Effects, now known as Am Taylor, are an independent American rock band formed in Atlanta, GA in 2011. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on post-punk and glam rock along with elements from other genres such as space rock and psychedelic rock. The band consists of Amber Taylor, Clay McClure, Mike Sidner, and recently added guitarist Ryan McDougall.
History
Amber Taylor is a transgender musician who began playing around the Atlanta music scene in 2000. She was in the progressive rock bandCobweb Strange at one point and was a featured headliner at the Pat Briggs Glitterdome in 2003. Amber eventually branched off as a solo artist forming the Amber Taylor Band which later became known as Amber Taylor and the Sexual Side Effects. In late December 2010, Amber met Mike Sidner at an industrial-goth club, The Shelter, and started talking about music and her band. Realizing that they shared musical influences and a yearning to play in a successful band, they began exploring the idea of putting the band back together. On New Year's Day, 2011, Amber dedicated herself to pursuing her dreams. Together with Mike, she reenlisted long-time friend Clay to plays drums in a new incarnation of The Sexual Side Effects. After a couple of rehearsals as a trio, the band yearned for a second guitarist to round out the sound. The band auditioned two guitarists, including Matt Foster, guitarist from the Atlanta bum rock band Toy Devils. With Matt on the roster, the band began rehearsing in earnest. The band unveiled their new lineup in a debut show at 529 in East Atlanta village on Thursday, April 28, 2011. The show set a record for Thursday turn-out at the club. The band toured the eastern and south-western US. After a year, Matt Foster left the band to pursue a solo project, and the band recruited multi-instrumentalist Ryan McDougall to play guitar and sing backing vocals. On November 25th, 2019, the band decided to change its name to "Am Taylor," the lead singer's name. They stated that "after much back an forth on this decision over the years, it seems like the dawn of 2020 is the perfect time to make the change." They also took the opportunity to announce new musiccoming up in the upcoming year on their Facebook page: "After much thought about how to proceed, The Sexual Side Effects have decided to retire the name, and we are now changing the name to Am Taylor! We have thought about this for a long time, and over the years our band name has mislead new fans on our sound as well as created road blocks to our true north. The project was formed by songwriter Amber Taylor to put their vision into the world, and as many people called Amber "Am" it was a natural progression to adopt this moniker. A series of new releases are in route for 2020, containing new songs and a couple unreleased ones the SSE played at shows. This was a difficult decision, and we have been silent for a while as the indecisiveness has stopped us from moving forward on releasing music and touring. There have been so many amazing people on this journey who were part of it. We are eternally grateful and humbled by all the love and support over the years. Looking forward to the journey ahead, and more Rock N Roll!"
Musical Style
"SSE has a very solid, psychedelic sound – the kind you might hear when falling down a rabbit hole" The band's fresh indie-pop take on post-punk and glam rock revival is catchy. Melodic guitars, entrancing vocals, and tight arrangements define most of the material, but the live set often includes extended space jams and intense guitar solos. Influences ranging from Echo & The Bunnymen to Queens of the Stone Age can be heard in the songwriting and guitar playing.
