Jesus Christ Taxi Driver is making America rock again. With their facetious lyrical content and lounge folk sound, this Colorado band is one in the making. The band wasn’t making a political album to begin with but with everything that is going on in the current climate, they decided to do the respectable thing and take a swing at it. Thus Taxi The Rich was released. Their song “Have It” is about the American dream gone awry.
I sat down with the band for 5 Qs:
How did Jesus Christ Taxi Driver initially get together as a band?
We all met playing shows in the Front Range in Colorado. Ian and Will were in the band The Beeves that disbanded during the pandemic. Immediately after The Beeves break, Ian had the opportunity to record an album with The Yawpers. That recording session yielded the first JCTD album Lick My Soul. Will and Colin joined the band shortly after the record was finished. In 2024, Miles joined the band and almost right away we began working on Taxi the Rich.
Your music is very folk/punk/lounge driven. How did each of you collectively come to a decision on the band’s sound?
Our band’s sound is less a decision and more the sum of all members. It’s a special feeling when you can hear how everyone’s individual parts coalesce to make something you didn’t intend. We did two sessions to write Taxi the Rich which primarily involved jamming together.
We haven’t had a band since Rage Against the Machine that takes shots at politics like this in their lyrical content. Did you set out to do so or was this inspired by the current climate?
We didn’t declare that this album would conceptually be political at the beginning. But, it’s hard not to write songs about the time in which we are living. Lyrically, it felt best just to steer into the storm.
With the Taxi The Rich Again tour recently coming to a close, when will you be out on the road next?
We’ll be on the road in June in the Midwest and Texas. The tour will be announced on May 7.
What can we expect next from you guys?
We’ll be touring the Midwest, Texas and the PNW this year. We are performing at Offbeat Music Fest in Reno in October and we’re excited to be a part of the lineup. We are beginning to write some songs and hope to get back in the studio this year.
