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Originally Posted by Dead-Air
I'd agree whole-heartedly if we were speaking of Wendy Carlos, but in Gen's case s/he clearly made the gender transformation as an artistic statement and provocation. S/he's said as much in many an interview, and given lyrical content that has always been rife with fringe sexuality and deliberate challenges to what's considered "normal", it's assured that s/he wants us to be thinking about and discussing it.
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I agree; but I do think that the nature of the T of LBGT is something that's rarely given 'serious' thought in music means you need people like Gen and Carlos (who I can't stand) equally. I don't think it undermines the effect of being 'transgendered' (for whatever that means within a broad spectrum) to do it as an 'art statement' - in a similar way to Greyson Perry within the art world (although he seems far more prosaic - "I'm kind of TV, but is that really important?").
I think one thing that's really interesting about Gen is that as a huge figure within a certain sort of 'alternative' music culture, 'their' (Gen and Lady Jaye's) status as 'pangendered' remains controversial to a huge part of their audience. We're all pretty bored with, say, Manson's 'cross-dressing' but actually forcing the issue with regards a more normative state of gender-identity is really important.
Anyway,
here's the post-transexual manifesto for those of you who've yet to read it - you really should.