Thundering Asteroids!

History

The band began as a joke between friends Scott Cushman and Dwight Reid, who said they should start a band so they could practice only twice a year and never play live shows. In 2009, Cushman's wife dared them to perform, leading to the band's formation and first show. The band has stated that "nothing is too nerdy or too geeky to inspire us in music." For example, the song "Frak Off" started as an attempt to string together science fiction swear words and became a narrative about a nerdy girl dumping her boyfriend. Other songs reference specific media: "Wood for Sheep" (The Settlers of Catan), "Cobra Kai Fight Song" (The Karate Kid), and "Scott Pilgrim Vs. My Heart" (Scott Pilgrim graphic novels). Frontwoman Jaime "Minn" McGeathy suggested "I've Got a Thing for the Goblin King" about David Bowie's character in the 1986 film Labyrinth, while "Monster Movie" began as a guitar riff. Songwriting is collaborative, though much of the writing is by Cushman. The band filmed their first music video for "Kill Screen of My Heart" at Portland's Ground Kontrol arcade in May 2012, which opened early to allow them access. Their first album, Tomorrow's Yesterdays Today!, was released in December 2012, and their second, The Nerd Punk Guide to the Galaxy, in October 2014. The song "Sexy Lamp", based on comic book writer Kelly Sue DeConnick's Sexy Lamp Test for female characters, was highlighted by DeConnick herself on Tumblr in August 2014. In 2014, McGeathy was part of the "Women in Nerd Music" panel at GeekGirlCon with Angela and Aubrey Webber of The Doubleclicks, Molly Lewis, Sammus, and Shubzilla.