Bending genders is nothing new in music. David Bowie, Marilyn Manson and even Lady Gaga have all played with the idea of melding male and female personas, but it was all ultimately for show.
In 2012, Tom Gabel of Florida punk rockers Against Me! did it for real when he announced to stunned friends, family and fans that he was changing his name to Laura Jane Grace and beginning female hormone treatment.
“I wish I’d have addressed all this earlier, because I could have been much further along with getting myself together,” says Grace, 33, who, along with bandmates James Bowman (guitar), Inge Johansson (bass) and Atom Willard (drums), will play at Webster Hall on Saturday. “I’m a lot happier not having to deny it all.”
Earlier this year, Against Me! released the ferocious “Transgender Dysphoria Blues” — their sixth album since forming in 1997 — and it documented Grace’s struggle in the most uncompromising manner.
For the most part, Against Me!’s fiery sound remains intact and Grace’s hormone treatment has not affected her voice. The transition is ongoing and will be documented in the AOL reality series “So Much More,” which will premiere later in the year.
Most of the group’s long-term fans have been supportive, but Grace’s family life has been a little more challenging.
“I’m still close with my mother, but I haven’t spoken to my father since I came out. It ended that relationship — for now at least.”
Grace and wife Heather initially insisted they would stay together, but have separated in recent months.
Although she now lives in the more progressive atmosphere of Chicago, Grace frequently encounters hostility in other parts of the country.
“When we were recording our album in Georgia, a supermarket bag boy told me I was gonna burn in hell,” she remembers. “I just tune it out.”
Most accepting of Grace’s decision to come out as a woman is her 4-year-old daughter, Evelyn.
“She knows that I’m still going to be her parent, and that’s all that really matters. I’ve been at the playground with her and other kids will ask, ‘Are you a boy or a girl?’ Kids will ask really blunt questions, but if you answer them directly and honestly, they’ll say, ‘OK,’ and go back to playing!”