Siamese Dream Turns 20
July 28, 2013 § Leave a comment
Happy 20th birthday to one of the best albums of the 1990s, and in my opinion, of all time.
Siamese Dream trivia:
- Right before the release of the record, Smashing Pumpkins were hyped to be “the next Nirvana”.
- Today was the first song written for Siamese Dream and although it sounds upbeat, is actually about depression and self mutilation.
- The band was highly dysfunctional at the time of recording: Jimmy was battling heroin addiction, James and D’arcy had just broken up, and Billy started seeing a therapist to help his suicidal depression.
- After Jimmy disappeared for a few days on a drug bender while recording, Billy “put the hammer down” and made him play his drum parts for Cherub Rock until his hands bled.
- Billy overdubbed his own playing on top of James and D’arcy’s for much of the album.
- Billy worked overtime, practically living in the studio. He and producer Butch Vig would sometimes work on the same 45 seconds of a song for two days to get the sound Billy wanted.
- Butch Vig stated as many as 100 guitar parts would be compressed into a single song.
- The album took 4 months longer to record than it was supposed to and went $250,000 over budget.
- This is untrue.
6 Months!
July 15, 2013 § Leave a comment
On Wednesday, I hit the 6 month mark in my pregnancy! The second trimester is just flying by and will very soon be over.
What’s new in babymaker land:
- Nick and I went stroller and crib browsing on Saturday. Even though it was overwhelming, we have a much better idea of what we’re looking for in both categories now. (It’s looking like this stroller & something like this crib.)
- My appreciation for working from home only grows as wearing a bra has become torturous. (Imagine fitting the bottom of a bra around the growing top of that bump, pictured above!)
- Henry is moving around my belly more and more. Little kicks, pokes, punches, and what feels like somersaults happen regularly.
- I’ve (temporarily) lost more Ashtanga yoga poses and am not always able to fold forward to touch my head to my knee anymore.
- I have started taking prenatal yoga, sometimes even with my doula, a few times a week which is very nice. I just have to remember it’s not Ashtanga and no need to go nuts.
- I’m reading this book in preparation for labour.
- I’m helping the web company I freelance Social Media for find a replacement while I take maternity leave. If you know anyone, the job description is here.
Have a great Monday evening and stay cool, friends.
TURF Festival and Toronto Visit
July 10, 2013 § Leave a comment
Nick and I flew up to Toronto for two days this past weekend for what would be our last trip home before Henry comes. Since it was such a short trip and we were actually going so that Nick could see some bands that he works with, we stayed downtown the whole time, which was a nice change.
Despite a delayed flight, a fight against traffic to get from the airport, and waiting for an hour to check into our hotel, we made it to Fort York’s Garrison Commons for the first ever Toronto Urban Roots Festival.
We saw one of Nick’s favourite clients, Frank Turner, play plus Matt Mays & El Torpedo, and a few others. The best part for me was seeing all the Canadian music industry friends I hadn’t seen in quite some time. It was overwhelming having my ex-coworkers and all the other great people there, each one a surprise to run into! One of the best moments: Nick telling me how much he loves to watch me interact with “my people”. Ha!
I also ran into some friends like Alex and her cute little family. Her daughter, Addie, is Frank Turner’s #1 fan.
On Sunday, we got lunch with Julia, Jay, and Karen at our favourite spot. Then I headed back to TURF without Nick to meet up with friends, even though the sky looked threatening…
I got there in time to see Yo La Tengo and meet up with Alex, Jana, Sarah, and more (thanks to Sarah for the photo!) We got in some hangs before the skies opened up.
That night, we headed to Lee’s Palace to see Frank Turner, Northcote, and Larry & His Flask. You may ask “Hey wait a minute, aren’t you nearly six months pregnant? Where did you find the energy to do all of this, plus attend a wedding on Friday night?” Well, I was just so excited to see as many people as possible that I pushed on through two days of festivals and two nights of club shows. By 9:30 on Sunday night though, my belly felt strained from yelling over loud music and I was getting a headache so I sent myself home.
Sadly, I didn’t get to see everyone I hoped to, but I didn’t want to hurt myself. I had such a great time there though, and I’m so glad we got back home to Brooklyn before the massive storm and flooding from Monday night!
I love you, Toronto! The Storches will be back when we can.
Happy Canada Day!
July 1, 2013 § Leave a comment
Did you know…
- There’s more people in the state of California than all of Canada.
- After the 9/11 attacks, Canada launched “Operation Yellow Ribbon” which took in redirected flights of Americans trying to get home. Then for days afterwards, entire communities took in these 33,000 passengers, providing food and housing.
- The coldest day on record in North America took place in the Yukon: -81 degrees!
This video is perfect for all my curious American friends and even for Canadians who want to learn more about their country and the relationship between Canada and America. (BFFs!)