Against Me! is an American punk rock band formed in Gainesville, Florida, in 1997 by singer and guitarist
Tom Gabel (now Laura Jane Grace).
In 2012 Grace publicly came out as transgender, beginning a transition to living as a woman and dropping
the name Tom Gabel.
-Wikipedia
From:
Gainesville, Florida, United States
Genres:
Punk rock, alternative rock, folk punk, Anarcho-punk
Years active:
1997-present
Labels:
Misanthrope, Crasshole, Plan-It-X, No Idea, Sabot, Fat Wreck Chords, Sire, Total Treble, Xtra Mile
Associated acts:
Hot Water Music, The Draft, Forgetters, Angels & Airwaves, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, Rocket From The Crypt
Name Origin:
Tom Gabel was quoted as saying "When I was 17, I felt the whole world was against me".
In a Melbourne Sound interview he also remarked:
"I guess when I named the band I was feeling very misanthropic and paranoid. Ive never regretted the name."
Laura Jane Grace Name Origin:
"Laura" is the name her mother would have chosen if Gabel had been assigned female at birth;
"Jane" was selected simply because she thinks it pretty; "Grace" is her mother's maiden name.
Members:
Laura Jane Grace -
(Formerly Tom Gabel)
guitar, lead vocals (1997-present)
James Bowman -
guitar, vocals (2001-present)
Inge Johansson -
bass (2013-present)
Atom Willard -
drums, percussion (2013-present)
Past members:
Kevin Mahon -
drums, percussion, vocals (1998-2001)
Dustin Fridkin -
bass, vocals (1998, 2001-02)
Warren Oakes -
drums, percussion (2001-09)
George Rebelo -
drums, percussion (2009-10)
Jay Weinberg -
drums, percussion (2010-12)
Andrew Seward -
bass, vocals (2002-2013)
Against Me! Quotes:
When I was 12 my brother was 16 years old, and he started off being really metal, he had the long hair and everything. We would listen to bands like Testament, Metallica, and Anthrax. I was a huge Anthrax fan, I had an Anthrax patch on the back of one of my denim jackets. So, yeah, started really metal, but both my brother and I at the same time got into punk rock.
Tom Gabel
"When you have people making something thats really dear to you and turning it into something thats disgusting, it kind of happens,"
Tom Gabel
"At the same time politics is a word thats thrown around a lot and doesnt necessarily mean a good or bad thing, that should be defined in itself. I think like pop bands like Good Charlotte dont have anything to say and arent threatening."
Tom Gabel
"I think its been like that every time punk blows up and theres always the underground to it, sitting there calling other bands sellouts, Even when the mainstream goes away, theres still the underground thats still there and keeps it going."
Tom Gabel
"Ive been playing guitar since I was 8 years old. Ive always wanted to be a musician, to be in a band, for as
long as I can remember. My father was military, I wasnt really exposed to a lot of music when I was younger,
I discovered on my own, but Ive always been drawn to it."
Tom Gabel
"I felt like I drop-kicked them in the face," she said of informing the other members of Against Me!
"We had the most awkward hug ever, and then they left. And the second I shut the door, I was like,
'What the f*ck did I just do?'"
Laura Jane Grace
"The cliché is that you're a woman trapped in a man's body, but it's not that simple. It's a feeling
of detachment from your body and from yourself. And It's sh*tty, man. It's really f*cking sh*tty."
Laura Jane Grace
Tour Dates: