Tom Gable changed gender in a move that surprised, shocked and even delighted some.
5/11/09
When I was a young man
My hero was Tom Gable
The singer of Against Me!
I even loved the solo stuff
Saw him play at a youth centre
And Against Me! at ‘The Green Room’
Me and my mate locked shoulders
And sang the oh way oh’s of their best song
My mate didn’t believe me
When I told him they had signed
To a major record label
And where I had previously disowned Greenday
I forgave then and listen to ‘New Wave’
As I walked around Paris
Tom is a woman now
Calls himself Laura Jane Grace
I’m still processing it
It’s not that I care about his gender
I just liked him so much as Tom
I hope he’s found his peace
Tortured as he was
‘Joy’ and ‘Cliché Guevera’
Are still all time favourites
Listening to his/her stuff
Fills me with a thousand thoughts
And myriad emotions
I still think about Tom Gable
—
Punk rock idol number 3, Tom Gable, changed gender in a move that surprised, shocked and even delighted some. Cynics thought it was a way of recovering alternative culture credibility but I think he just had a feeling he would be more real and content with the choice.
Against Me!s early stuff I found to be profoundly moving and poetic, I still listen to them to this day.
