Claudia Gonson

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Claudia Gonson

Vocalist, Drummer, Keyboardist, Band Manager

“I was straight when Stephin met me, and I’m gay now, which may have been influenced by the openness of hanging around with so many gay people,” she reflects. “When we started Magnetic Fields we purposely had one lesbian, one gay guy, one straight woman, and one straight man. The audience could identify with whomever they wanted. I hang out with more gay women now, but I guess I’m more of a fag hag than a lezzie hag” -- Claudia Gonson (from the Walters interview)

astrological chart analysis

ASTRODATA: Born April 1968, Boston, MA, USA. {Pat Taglilatelo of Lois Rodden's AstroDatabank quotes data from birth certificate}. RR: AA.

FEATURES: PERSONALIZED PLANETS: SATURN (conjunct Sun, ASC, and North Node; square Moon), Sun (conjunct ASC & North Node), CHIRON (conjunct ASC). PATTERNS: TRIPLE CONJUNCTION (Venus, Mercury, Chiron, all in Twelfth House). SHAPE: HORSESHOE. CHINESE SIGN: EARTH MONKEY. NUMEROLOGY: "33" LIFEPATH.

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magnetic fields

Claudia Gonson plays drums for pop group, The Magnetic Fields, plus she manages lead singer Stephin Merritt and his other bands. She also drums in cult band, Tender Trap. Although not formally trained she's been a singer since childhood. A classical pianist from age 3-18 (quitting the piano after high school), she took up drums at 16. Having met Merritt in 1983 when they attended nearby high schools in the Boston area, she's been playing drums with him in various bands ever since. Their first band, the Zinnias, included their friends John on bass, Johny Blood on tuba, and Charles on voice. Next Gonson played drums in a 3-piece folk-country-rock Boston girl group, Lazy Susan, from 1986 to 1988. Around 2000 she switched back from drums to piano. She's also drummed for Honeybunch, a pop band featuring Jeffrey Underhill of the Velvet Crush, occasionally played with Dave Derby (Dambuilders)'s side band, Brilliantine, and been the singer for Future Bible Heroes, a new wave electro-pop band featuring Merritt on alternate lead vocals and Christopher Ewen on synths. Gonson's working on a PhD in English, at CUNY (City University of New York), and she enjoys yoga, making Ukranian Easter Eggs and painting clay pots.

Saturn conjunct the Sun both in Aries on her Ascendant plus her North Node explains her management skills, while Venus conjunct Mercury in Pisces in the Twelfth House indicates her musical versatility.

references

"Claudia Gonson" ArtRat 2003.

Kemler, Allan. "The Magnetic Fields/Claudia Gonson Interview" Crud Magazine 26 March 2002.

Lichaw, Donna. "Claudia Gonson ...A Drummergirl exclusive" Drummergirl. The Media Factory, October 1997.

Merritt, Stephin. House of Tomorrow.

"Purge chats with Claudia Gonson of The Magnetic Fields"

Walters, Barry. "Sweet Singin’ Woman" Advocate (online) 9 May 2000.

Wu, Suzanne. "The Magnetic Fields" Phoenix Online 20 January 2000.