Taylor Kraemer Leaves VIAL After Seven and a Half Years

Taylor Kraemer has left VIAL. The announcement came through her own Instagram account, and the terms were plain. After seven and a half years, Kraemer described the decision as massive and equally scary, and framed it around her wellbeing rather than any falling out.

What she leaves behind is more than a single role. Kraemer founded the Minneapolis punk band and served as co-lead vocalist, one of its lead songwriters, bassist, keytarist and social media manager, by her own accounting. Bands of VIAL’s scale run on that kind of stacked labor, and the departure removes several of them at once. Her statement thanked her bandmates for the years of memories on the road, and thanked listeners specifically for the moments at shows and merch booths, which is where a band like this actually gets built.

The timing gives the news its weight. VIAL released their fifth album, Hellhound, earlier this year, so Kraemer exits just after a record rather than in a quiet stretch between cycles. She also named what comes next for her personally, including time with family and community, cats included, and an MBA she has recently been pursuing.

She was explicit that this is not the end of her music. Kraemer said she will be in the studio soon to record new songs. VIAL have not stated their plans.