Against Me! is in total album promotion mode. Today (Feb. 6), the alternative rock band announced a new tour in support of its latest album Transgender Dysphoria Blues. Soon after the string of shows was announced, the band's lead singer Laura Jane Grace took to Reddit's Music subreddit for an AMA about her gender transformation, being a "punk rock parent" and her band's new album.
Here are five things we learned from Grace's AMA.
5. Rocking out with long hair is kind of hard.
When asked whether or not she'd considered a bang haircut, Laura Jane Grace admitted that more hair = more problems. "Lately I've been having trouble at shows. I'll go to start singing and suck hair down my throat and start choking. So yes, I have thought about bangs," she wrote. We can relate...
4. Before Transgender Dysphoria Blues, which blatantly tackles Grace's transgender identity, she littered Against Me!'s lyrics with references to her inner struggle.
Grace admitted that songs such as "Pretty Girls," "The Disco Before The Breakdown," "Searching For A Former Clarity" and "Tonight We're Going To Give It 35%" all include references to gender dysphoria.
3. Musical influences range from The Doors to Guns N Roses to punk rock.
"So many bands define periods of time in my life. Madonna inspired me to want to be a performer. When I was 8 I was obsessed with Guns And Roses. When I was 12 I was obsessed with The Doors. The punk band Crass forever changed and shaped the my politics and the way I approach music. The Mountain Goats have been one of the biggest influences on my songwriting. For the past year the only album I've been able to listen to is Roland S. Howard's Teenage Snuff film," she wrote. As for what Grace is listening to today? Shovels & Rope's "Birmingham" and Robin Hitchcock's "New York Doll."
2. Against Me! will also be touring internationally.
In addition to US dates announced today, the band will also be hitting up Canada.
1. She's working on a book, and puts off work just like the rest of us.
"I am currently working on a book. Actually, I should be working on it right now but I'm procrastinating by doing this AMA," she wrote. So, it seems like we all go on Reddit to kill time.
