Hit So Hard A Memoir – Patty Schemel

Back then, if you wanted expensive cheese or jeans, you would have to leave the_neighbor- hood to go to Melrose Avenue in Beverly Hills or West Holly- wood—these days you can find both in Silver Lake, no problem. In those days, that part of Sunset Boulevard had only a couple of things going on—Millie’s Coffee, which is still there (ditto the 7-Eleven on Effie), and the kitschy boutique called You’ve Got Bad Taste owned by Exene Cervenka from the legendary punk band X. We often went to shows just down the hill from us at Spaceland, a decent venue.

Melissa and I went to so many shows together that we’d gained a reputation for it; if one of us was spotted without the other it was notable. I knew no one could mistake us for a couple—we were both very out about our individual sexual preferences—but we were both single and looking, and I felt pretty disconnected from the community of gay people in L.A. One night I went by myself to the Troubadour in West Hollywood, and this guy Randy from the scene called out to me, “Hey Flea, where’s Anthony?”

(his nickname for us, the other inseparable pair in town). I explained that she had gone back home to Montreal to take care of her dad, who was ill. Making small talk, I observed that all the rainbow flags were out—was Pride weekend upcoming? Or were the flags permanent fixtures and I was just too used to blend- ing in that I’d forgotten to notice?

Randy was an A&R rep for a record company and had been in the scene forever. And though it wasn’t exactly cool to be gay in 1996, West Hollywood was, and is, the most gay-friendly neighborhood in L.A., and indie rockers hanging out at the Troubadour were a pretty safe bet, as far as tol- erance was concerned. But in the face of these benign questions, suddenly Randy turned angry and defensive. “I don’t know! How would I know? I’m not gay,” he practically spat at me and stormed off.

(He would come out of the closet sev- eral years later.) At that time in my life, I never had a problem meeting women, and I never had a problem telling people I was gay. I didn’t care if it pissed someone off that I wasn’t their idea of a traditional lady, but it often surprised me that it bothered anyone at all.

After that first year of touring, there had been a couple of incidents where I’d be reminded that some people really cared. My ten-year high school reunion coin- cided with our European tour, and I obviously couldn’t make an in-person appearance.

surrounded by the AA meetings her parents hosted in the family living room. Their divorce triggered her first forays into drinking at age twelve and dovetailed with her passion for punk rock and playing the drums. Patty’s struggles with her sexuality further drove her notoriously hard playing, and by the late ’80s she had focused that anger, confusion, and drive into regular gigs with well-regarded bands in Tacoma, Seattle, and Olympia, Washington.

She met a pre-Nirvana Kurt Cobain at a Melvins show, and less than five years later, was living with him and his wife, Hole front-woman Courtney Love, at the height of his fame and on the cusp of hers. As the platinum-selling band’s new drummer, Schemel contributed memorable, driving beats to hits like “Beautiful Son,” “Violet,” “Doll Parts,” and “Miss World.” But the band was plagued by tragedy and heroin addiction, and by the time Hole went on tour in support of their ironically titled and critically- acclaimed album Live Through This in 1994, both Cobain and Hole bassist Kristen Pfaff had died at the age of 27.

With surprising candor and wit, Schemel intimately documents the events surrounding her dramatic exit from the band in 1998 that led to a dark descent into a life of homelessness and crime on the streets of Los Angeles, and the difficult but rewarding path to lasting sobriety after more than twenty serious attempts to get clean. Hit So Hard is a testament not only to the enduring power of the music Schemel helped create but an important document of the drug culture:that threatened to destroy it.

Oct 2017 HIT SO HARD pees, Rave tr Sables rds Ar | sae i © 4 a ig HIT SO HARD | A MEMOIR | PATTY SCHEMEL with ERIN HOSIER Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Da Capo Press was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed in initial capital letters. Copyright © 2017 by Patty Schemel Hachette Book Group supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright.

The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact [email protected].

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

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• File Extension: .pdf
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• Title: –
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• ISBN: 9780306825071, 9780306825088
• Pages: 313
• Language: English (en)

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