Politically charged Florida punk band Against Me! has just released its latest studio album, Transgender Dysphoria Blues. This is the first record the band has released since frontwoman Laura Jane Grace, formerly Tom Gabel, announced that she would be living as a woman back in 2012. Fans may have been initially surprised by Grace’s coming out, but those closest to the musician know that she has been struggling with gender dysphoria for years.
Transgender Dysphoria Blues is an album that encapsulates the intense emotional
experiences that the band has endured throughout Grace’s transition. As Stephen
Thompson for NPR explains, Against Me! has been around for nearly two decades,
but this record “can’t help but feel like
a debut.” It is a coming-out album, one that honors Grace’s identity but
also tackles the pain, doubt, rage, fear, as well as relief and joy, that comes
with such a remarkable life transition. Many music critics are calling this
record the most personal and poignant of her career.
Thompson explains how Laura
Jane Grace “still barks her lyrics with
fiercely assertive intelligence,” and that Gender Dysphoria Blues “doesn’t let up for 29 brisk minutes, but real
tenderness and vulnerability surfaces in the melee,” of the album’s sound.
MTV agrees, explaining how in certain moments Gender Dysphoria Blues displays a level of vulnerability that
completely separates it from the rest of Against Me!’s work.
Since coming out in 2012,
Grace has been under a lot of public scrutiny, but has remained strong,
transparent, and ready to move forward. One of the best outcomes of the
singer’s transition has been the immense outpouring of support from her
bandmates, fans, and loved ones. Though not all of Grace’s relatives have been
supportive, her wife Heather has been steadfastly encouraging throughout the
transition process. Transgender Dysphoria
Blues is Grace’s debut album as a woman; it is unapologetic, raw, and
everything that you’d expect from the seasoned frontwoman.
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