After completing high school at Bearden High School in 1987, Bell decided against college, feeling it would be a “waste of money.” At the age of 18, Bell moved to Los Angeles, California, and enrolled at G.I.T. In 1991, he became a member of a band named Carnival Art, which released 3 official albums and an EP, with Bell playing bass guitar. The band had low record sales, and were dropped by their record label, Beggars Banquet.

Throughout the years Bell fronted his own band, Space Twins, who have had various incarnations since 1993. They have released three EPs and an LP, The End of Imagining, in 2003. Yet in 2006, Bell stated that he was “not presently pursuing” projects with The Space Twins.

Bell has also expressed an interest in the works of William Shakespeare. During the band’s downtime in 2003 and 2004, Bell and his ex-girlfriend Peggy Nunez studied Shakespeare and poetry theory at collegiate level. They also appeared in a production of Twelfth Night, in which Bell wrote four songs, all using Shakespeare’s words.

Although all songwriting credits on Weezer’s 2005 album Make Believe are credited to Rivers Cuomo, Bell wrote the intro to “We Are All on Drugs” and the dueling guitars in the solo of “This is Such a Pity.” Bell also contributed the song “Thought I Knew” to the band’s 2008 self-titled album as well as “It’s Easy,” an iTunes exclusive demo that serves as a bonus track to that album. This marks the first time Weezer has officially released a song written and sung by Bell, although the band demoed and played his song “Yellow Camaro” live in 2002. The song eventually made it onto the Space Twins debut LP The End of Imagining.

In 2005, during live appearances, Bell sang lead vocals on “Why Bother?”, “Smile”, “Getchoo” and “Keep Fishin'”. In 2008 during the band’s Hootenanny Tour he began taking lead vocals on “El Scorcho”. He continued singing “El Scorcho” and sang “Suzanne” as well on the band’s Troublemaker Tour in 2008.

In November 2006, Lyon Guitars (by Washburn) introduced a limited edition guitar series called “Limited Edition 2006,” each of which had been hand-signed by Bell, and were in the same “strat” body style that he prefers to play.

Bell has appeared in one-off performances on guitar with other bands. Playing on March 17, 2006 at The Troubador in LA with Weezer tour-mates Ringside, and performing “Our Lips Are Sealed”, with the Go-Go’s member, Jane Wiedlin, on June 1, 2006 at the Viper Room. He sat in on guitars and back up vocals for Ringside’s winter ’06 tour in Russia.

In 2006, Bell made his on-screen debut, playing Lou Reed in the Edie Sedgwick biographical film, Factory Girl. Bandmate Patrick Wilson also appeared as John Cale, another member of the Velvet Underground.

In 2007 Bell recorded for a side project called The Relationship. The recording took place at Henson Recording Studios and Padre Terrace in Los Angeles and is produced by Weezer engineer Eric J. Sean Lennon mentioned in an interview that he will appear with Bell on The Relationship’s debut record. Rivers Cuomo and Bell co-wrote a song together for the project titled “Hand to Hold,” but Bell does not think it will be on their debut album. In May 2007 he uploaded “Hand to Hold” on the band’s Myspace page. It is a reworking of the Weezer song “Private Message,” which was originally in the running for inclusion on Make Believe. In March 2017, Bell announced that the band’s newest album, Clara Obscura (meaning “Clear” and “Obscure”), would be released on April 18.

As of 2014, Bell solely uses Gibson Guitars, his current main instrument being a 2001 Gibson Explorer in limited edition diamond sparkle finish, which he found in Rivers Cuomo’s basement, with a chrome mirror pickguard. His main amplifier is a Matchless Independence, a three channel, hand-wired tube amplifier, providing the thick distortion that Weezer is known for.