Laura Jane Grace the frontwoman of Against Me! cancelled her scheduled appearance at the upcoming NOFX Weekend At Fatty’s live stream, which is set for September 19. Grace stated that she had a panic attack during a trip to Los Angeles which she made to film her portion of the stream and added that the poor Los Angeles air quality did not help her situation.

Grace explained that she was plugged into the PA for about 15 minutes for a brief soundcheck, however she stopped as she couldn’t withstand being around so many people for the event. She later explained that past six months really took a psychological toll on her, causing her to understand that it will take more than the pandemic ending to go back to being “normal.”

I was plugged into a PA for about 15 minutes for a soundcheck though and it was truly exhilarating to play amplified music. Makes me so sad to not be able to play shows.

— Laura Jane Grace (@LauraJaneGrace) September 14, 2020

“I couldn’t handle it (the live stream) though, the pandemic and being around people at an ‘event’ coupled with the LA air quality coupled with balancing sobriety. It was too much. I didn’t feel safe in a number of ways and just couldn’t hang,” Grace explained on Twitter.

Made me realize how much the past 6 months have really affected me psychologically and how if the pandemic is ever under control going back to “normal” won’t actually be a thing that just happens instantaneously

— Laura Jane Grace (@LauraJaneGrace) September 14, 2020

Against Me! was set to tour in May alongside Baroness however these events were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They had tour dates planned for March and April, but these events were also cancelled as a result of the pandemic. The group held a “2 Nights / 4 Records / 48 Songs” tour last fall, where they performed Former Clarity, New Wave, White Crosses and Transgender Dysphoria Blue in their entirety. Her solo album Bought to Rot came out via Bloodshot Records in 2018.

Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat