Cock Rock
Hustler re-tools with “Hustler Rocks” – editor Nancy B. Sayle gets it up.
By Keith Bergman

When long-running smut/satire/more-smut magazine Hustler needed a makeover, the thirty-year-old flagship publication of Larry Flynt’s empire decided it was time to rock. Enter “Hustler Rocks,” a new section devoted to, well, rocking, and the long-running connection between the music and sleaze businesses. Nancy B. Sayle, a twenty-year veteran of the music business, has been tapped to run this new section, and she’s already brought the likes of Zakk Wylde, Prong, Sevendust, and Sworn Enemy into the fold for revealing Q&A’s.

Sayle, whose resume includes stints as a pyro technician, roadie, and a lengthy career as a publicist, was hired by Hustler based on prior experience combining rock n’porn at Oui (the mag recently renowned for its 1970s interview with then-orgiastic governor-to-be Schwarzenegger). “They wanted a more contemporary look while keeping the integral internals,” Sayle comments. “Being that porn is no longer the taboo it was when all these adult magazines started, you have to make changes for a more contemporary crowd. Rock and porn go hand in hand – but there was a time that rock stars didn't even let people know that they were dating porn chicks. Strippers maybe, but not porn [stars]! I think that the rock, along with the other wonderful editorial that is now included in Hustler, gives it a more user friendly vibe for the mainstream.”

While Sayle doesn’t work directly in the Hustler offices, she’s become acquainted with the legendary Flynt himself. “I find him extremely charming and sweet. He is amazing to listen to. People do not get the whole Larry Flynt – they just think smut. He does own several magazines that you probably don't even know [about]. He is very smart man.”

With five pages per issue devoted to interviews, metal news, and features on “up and cumming” (ouch) bands, Hustler Rocks is off to a strong start. The magazine has a Hustler Rocks tour planned, contests in the works – even autograph signings at Hustler’s retail outlets. And while Sayle thinks the section is off to a great start, she admits that, “in the long [run] I would like to see more rock editorial pages to go with the porn. Make it a little more even.”

Sayle doesn’t flinch when asked if she’s conflicted about being a woman in a business long accused of misogyny. “Look at it this way,” she points out. “There are people who do and people who don't – it's the people who don't that want to. Instead they have to live through the doers and [not] admit it… Look, if something offends you I suggest you stay clear of whatever it is that you are offended by – we all have the freedom of choice. I think it's offensive for girls to have crap drilled in their head like ‘you have to learn to cook, clean, knit and sew’ – I think that's crap. I am sure I will get a lot of women bashing me, but let’s be realistic. I have worked in the music industry for 20 years, and I have seen thousands of females throw their naked bodies at the rock stars. No one put them there or forced them – they want to do it. Do I condone this? Not really, but I have to live with my choices, not [theirs]. Everyone has free will -- I am not going to judge. Does this stuff mess up chicks’ minds? I am sure it does [for] many, and not to others – but everything that you do has effects on you. It depends on the strength of your mind. As for as exploitative material… Isn't everything exploitative? And how do you exploit people when they seek out that type of attention?”

An unabashed lover of the unironic hard rock of the '80s (her desert island CD carrying case would include Queensryche, plus Warrant’s greatest hits), Sayle pulls no punches when it comes to her thoughts of today’s hard music scene. “It's a sad state of affairs. Music is cyclical and we are in the 1950's. One hit wonders are making their way. No longer do labels grow bands for longevity, they want the quick fix of cash returns. But, when you can see the bandwagon, it's time to head the other way. I do have to say that I am finding that there are a few standout bands coming up. They are actually playing rock – no whiny crap. Music is meant to make you escape, not feed into the black hole of your brain and make you more fucked up. I am hearing more and more real rock coming out, but it is just a trickle. It's a start. After ‘93 I didn't really listen anymore – you can say I am stuck, but listening to whiny disposable crap-like music is not for me.”

And Sayle will bring the real rock to Hustler Rocks – she’s just hoping there’ll be more than dirty old men who notice. “Before judging anything, go check it out,” she concludes. “I think it's turning into a very cool magazine. Not just vagina anymore – now you can truly say that you buy it for the editorial.”