Legendary punk band Pansy Division are coming to Portland's Mississippi Studios on Thursday, September 28th to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their groundbreaking album Undressed.  

 

Born out of the frustration of the lack of openly gay rock musicians in 1991, Pansy Division was formed in San Francisco by vocalist Jon Ginoli and bassist Chris Freeman.  On tour celebrating the 30^th anniversary of their debut album Undressed (Lookout! Records, 1993), Pansy Division is hitting the road in 2023 for nine shows across the country including Minneapolis, Chicago, Portland, Seattle, and New York City.

 

They tell us:

Thirty years on, their trailblazing has never been more fully realized: the music scene has grown exponentially more accepting of LGBTQ+ artists to the point that it’s almost dizzying.  “There is so much of it now that I can't keep track of it, and that's a far cry from when we were starting out,” he says.  “If more people had been out then, especially in rock, we might not have felt the need to start this band in the first place. But there wasn't, so we did, and being so open, unapologetic, blunt and fun about it means that it still resonates today,” says Ginoli.

 

Pansy Division are Chris Freeman (bass, vocals), Jon Ginoli (rhythm guitar, vocals), Luis Illades (drums) and Joel Reader (lead guitar, vocals).

Watch: I Really Wanted You" (official MTV version) by Pansy Division