Against Me

[Ivan May]

Against Me! was an American punk rock band, formed in 1997 in Naples, Florida by singer and guitarist Laura Jane Grace. That same year, Grace moved to Gainesville, Florida, which is considered the band's hometown. Since 2001, the band's lineup has also included guitarist James Bowman. After releasing three studio albums through independent record labels, including their 2002 debut, Reinventing Axl Rose, Against Me! moved to Sire Records for 2007's New Wave, which was produced by Garbage drummer Butch Vig and reached no. 57 on the Billboard 200. In 2011, the band launched the record label Total Treble.

In 2012, Grace publicly came out as a transgender woman. After a long period of line-up changes and uncertainty surrounding the band's future, their sixth studio album, Transgender Dysphoria Blues, was released independently in January 2014 to critical and commercial acclaim. The band's seventh full-length, Shape Shift with Me, was released September 16, 2016. In 2020, the group went on hiatus but have not yet confirmed or denied that they have split up. As a matter of fact, Atom Willard, who was the drummer for Angels and Airwaves and The Offspring, was at one time a member of Against Me!

 

I also really like that Laura Jane Grace plays Rickenbacker guitars. I have a few friends who like Against Me! and they get a lot of airplay on college radio stations. My opinion is that if you like such pop punk bands as Avril Lavigne, Paramore, or Panic At The Disco, then you shall become a fan of Against Me! I already am.