What’s it like being a pregnant drummer on tour?

So sure, there are rockstar moms … but then there are mamas who are quite literally rockstars! Like Trish Naudon here, drummer for a band out of New York City called The NATCH — and also due to become a mama in August. I tracked Trish down to ask her a few questions about how she manages to mix the perfect cocktail of rockstar and mama — and how her fetus likes it when she’s playing the drums!

Trish, is this your first child?
Yes, and we just found out yesterday it’s a little girl with long fingers and we’re psyched, maybe she’ll be a bass player;-) – she’s due Aug 19, 2010 and we’re naming her, Myla Sol.

Tell me a tiny bit about your band.
We’re The NATCH, from NYC a trio with a smoking guitar player, Chris Thomas a sassy bass player Paris Mancini and me, Trish Naudon on the drums. We’re a year old next month and have been on four tours this past year to the Midwest, Northeast and South. We’ve been very lucky and have been sponsored for most of our tours and now we’re finishing up our recording of our debut CD due out this Summer 2010. Some say we sound like a mix of The Clash meets The Breeders, Pixies & The Police — we love hearing that!

Where’s the tour going?
May 1st we play a benefit show for The RED CROSS in Danbury, CT then off to the Boston Walk for Hunger to 44,000 people which will be our second appearance as The NATCH and our first anniversary show. Then we head over to the Midwest with a sprinkling of gigs on our way to Cleveland, OH to play with our good pals at a JIB Machine Records Showcase and Chicago to play a big benefit show for the Veterans of America sold out show. We’re super excited to be able to squeeze in these shows as I’ll almost seven months pregnant – yikes.

Were you daunted by the idea of going on tour while pregnant?

I know this is hardcore and gross but I just made sure to have my little bucket near my drum set at all times.

LOL! Well, at first when I was about 2 months we had a Midwest tour in the middle of January and I had fierce morning sickness coupled with bronchitis, which was tough. I know this is hardcore and gross but I just made sure to have my little bucket near my drum set at all times. Even watching the mosh pit and beer smell made me instantly sick feeling but the minute we started playing I felt really good — so the key was to not stop playing. My band mates were awesome and my right foot never stopped thumping my kicking drum. Otherwise I really enjoyed being on tour and seeing all our friends making new ones.

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Does the baby respond when you’re playing?
Fully! I didn’t know what it was at first. After a couple hours of practice when we’d take a break I would feel this tempo-like beat in my belly and then slowly figured out she was moving to the music for a good 20 minutes after we had stopped. I even saw an ultra sound with her moving around as if she was dancing! Apparently music is really good for babies and thank goodness because she gets a lot of it. My husband likes to rest his acoustic guitar on my belly and play a sweet tune for her in the mornings.

What’s the biggest challenge of being a pregnant rockstar?
Stage clothes! Honestly all has been really normal except for the growth of my belly and trying to figure out what to wear on stage. As a drummer, I usually like to wear as little as possible because I get so hot … but now my body has taken on a mind of its own. RockStarMoms recently endorsed me and hooked me up with some SWEET rock clothes that I now live in, seriously! I’m so happy I can still look like I’m part of my band. Cool maternity clothes are really hard to find for rocker gals. The other challenge is dealing with my growing boobs! I’m normally small up there and now I really gotta strap them down.

How do you think your career will change once you have the baby?
I’m sure we’ll have some down time playing live and touring for a few months but we’ll continue to write songs and record. We’re lucky to be a very prolific band and we’re already planning on recording our second CD for a Fall 2010 release. We’ve even talked about getting a bigger touring vehicle with room for a baby helper to go on tour with us, we’ll see. It’d be great to have her on tour with us and only be separated for the time I’m on stage — that would be awesome!

How will it stay the same?
I’m hoping we’ll continue to write and rock it out as much as we can – it would be weird not to. Since this is our first baby we know things will change a bit but I suppose we’ll just have to see how much we can actually juggle. I’ll have to keep you posted on that one.

What advice do you have for other rockstar mamas?
Eat well, exercise and be healthy and you’ll be able to keep rocking! Oh yeah make sure to let other people carry your gear and enjoy the ride!

About the Author: Ariel

@findyourafterglow

Author of three editions of the Offbeat Bride book and its sequel (From Shitshow To Afterglow, the ultimate offbeat breakup book) Ariel Meadow Stallings is the publisher of all the Offbeat Empire web properties. She lives in Seattle with her son. To read her latest work, follow @arielist.