Pride may have been this past weekend (inexplicably) but June isn’t over!
And no discussion of queer music can be complete without everyone’s favorite queercore band, Team Dresch.
Pandora’s probably one of the best things that happened to me in high school. It introduced me to bands like Uncle Tupelo and Drag the River…and queer music. I’d be glued to it during my free periods in high school. I remember looking around shiftily when Team Dresch’s “She’s Amazing” came in — just because I enjoyed listening to music about lesbians didn’t make me one…right…?
In spite of all the self-loathing and fear, I wasn’t really that angry when I was in the closet, and I haven’t had too much reason to be now that I’m out: the LGBTQ community has made demonstrable strides in the past few years, my parents have accepted my girlfriend (as much as any parent can be of someone you bring home), I’ve got friends, I can be out at my job and not worry about it.
So really, I see this album as part of an inherited past. It’s not really me (except for “She’s Amazing”), but I haven’t found too many modern-day counterparts for Team Dresch — except maybe (once again) High Dive. But that doesn’t make the music less important; Pride Month should be about celebrating who we are as a community, and remembering what a shitstorm of angst being gay used to (and in many places continues to) mean is a huge part of that.