The next show is gonna be great.

Click here to get your tickets.

Some of you folks might be curious who this new fangled member of Taxpayer you keep hearing about really is. I’m sure you’ve heard a lot of half-truths and some blatant misinformation, so I’m going to set the record straight.

I’m Maclaine Diemer, and I want to entertain you.

I first saw Taxpayer some time in 2005 as an opening act, before I had ever met any of them. Now, most of you would agree that opening acts typically are more aggravating than enjoyable, and you spend their time on stage chatting with friends in the back of the room or ordering more beers. Every once in a while, however, you come across a band you didn’t know anything about and you walk away wanting to know more. That was how I walked away from that show. I remember thinking “Who is that little guy up front with the huge voice?”. It would be a little while before our paths crossed again, but I never forgot them.

Fast forward another year or so. The Boston music scene has a way of shrinking the longer you stay at it, and at this point I had met Jay. The band was planning on doing a cover of Queen’s “We Are The Champions” and they needed someone to play piano, so he asked me. I jumped at the chance, of course, and finally met the rest of the band the first night we got together to rehearse. There was magic in the air. The song went over like gangbusters, and the seed was planted for future collaborations.

The following summer, the boys were getting together to record an EP, and Jay asked me to play trumpet, of all things. The trumpet was my first instrument, but I had not touched one in several years. However, I thought it would be a fun excuse to pick one back up, so I headed into the studio to honk out a few notes. Eventually I ended up contributing some keyboards and organ to a few of the songs. The whole experience was a blast, and working together more seemed like a no-brainer.

Over the next few months, Jay and I batted around the notion of doing a duo thing outside of our respective bands, and although we were both enthusiastic about the idea, we never managed to get together. After moving on from my previous band, I was left with a musical gap in my free time, and Jay asked if would like to play with Taxpayer full time. I didn’t even need to think before answering.

So, here I am. The New Guy. I couldn’t be happier about it. The new material is excellent, and (in my humble opinion), some of the best stuff the band has ever done. Our recent time in the studio was all play and no work, and the recordings reflect that. My first show with the band is coming up in a couple of days, and I’m bursting at the seams to play this stuff for a crowd. If you’re there, come up and say hi. I promise to do my best to thoroughly entertain you.

We’ll be playing the Pill at Great Scott on Friday night (the 16th).

This is from their site:

“Though it could be said we’re about a month late on this, this Friday the pill welcomes back our old friends Taxpayer, one of the original bands to throw down with us live at Great Scott. One of Boston’s finest rock bands, Taxpayer has been in locked down at the Camp Street studios with producer Paul Q. Kolderie (the Pixies, Radiohead, the Information) working on a follow up to 2005’s breakthrough album “Bones & Lungs” and last year’s split EP with Dear Leader. Expect not only a shit ton of new jams this Friday, but also a new member: Taxpayer was recently expanded into a quintet, welcoming former Bang Camaro guitarist Maclaine Diemer into the mix. Good shit all around, and the ROCK will most certainly be brought. It’s kinda like “Bring it On,” but for indie kids, mods and hipsters. Look sharp.

“Check out Taxpayer’s new website at www.taxpayermusic.com and preview some hits over at www.myspace.com/taxpayer (“When They Were Young” is
still a scorcher, three years later). Before and after the band, DJ Ken spins the best in Britpop, Modern Indie & Beyond, which Michael V. acts accordingly as your host.”

I don’t know the last time you listened to this record, but it’s a hit monster, front to back.

Do yourself a gigantic favor and listen again.

You can also do some research on it.

Hello hello hello. Welcome to the first blog post in Taxpayer’s history. Exciting, indeed. Speaking of exciting….

We are hard at work on our new record, tentatively titled “Don’t Steal My Night Vision.” We have recorded 8 tracks thus far, with more on the way. Track titles include “Don’t Steal My Night Vision,” “Star In Your Own Movie,” “Darwin’s Club,” “The Less We’re Impressed,” “We Have Arrived,” and 3 more I can’t think of right now (gimme a break - they’re new!). It’s all being done by Paul Kolderie, Adam Taylor, and Alex Hartman over at Camp St. Studios. If you go snoop around at their site you can even sample a couple of the new tracks. Shhhhh…. it’s a secret.

You can check out some awesome pics (like the one below) Maclaine took at the studio both on our flickr page and at his.

Speaking of Maclaine, he’s now playing with us! Yes. It’s awesome. He’s awesome. You gotta come out to our next show at see the madness (which is, coincidentally, very soon - May 16th at the Pill at Great Scott).

So, keep an eye peeled here and at our newly designed site. Gonna constantly update that crap. See you around.