Hiss Golden Messenger is an American folk music band, originating from Durham, North Carolina, led by MC Taylor. For the various recordings he is joined by a number of guest musicians. After releasing his earlier material on his own label, Taylor signed with Merge Records in 2014. In 2016 he released the album "Heart Like A Levee" and embarked on an international tour.
Taylor was raised in Irvine, CA, where his father had been a member of a local band, The Settlers. The band was formed by MC Taylor and Scott Hirsch in 2007, after their relocation in North Carolina. Both Taylor and Hirsch were the members of the hardcore punk band Ex-Ignota and San Francisco-based indie rock band The Court & Spark, whose dissolution led to the formation of the band.
The band's music contains elements from various musical genres, such as folk, country, dub, country soul, rhythm and blues, bluegrass, jazz, funk, swamp pop, gospel, blues, and rock. The band's style was also described as "alternative country" and "country rock". The band's main influences include the [a=The Beatles, The Byrds and Buffalo Springfield. The band has been compared to Will Oldham and Bill Callahan.