Soma (song)
Encyclopedia
"Soma", originally called "Coma", is a track on the album Siamese Dream
by The Smashing Pumpkins
. The song-writing credits list James Iha and Billy Corgan as co-authors, but Corgan claims that Iha only wrote the chord structure for the beginning of the song, and that Corgan himself wrote the rest. It remains a fan favorite, though it was not released as a single. One of the longer songs to appear on a Smashing Pumpkins album, it is said to have included up to 40 guitar tracks over the course of the song. A 2007 Rolling Stone
poll rated the guitar solo
as the 24th coolest in a list of 25. Corgan says the song "is based on the idea that a love relationship is almost the same as opium: it slowly puts you to sleep, it soothes you, and gives you the illusion of sureness and security." The song features a prominent piano figure by Mike Mills
of R.E.M. Soma
was a ritual drink for ancient peoples of the Indus River Valley
region and also the name of the (fictional) hallucinogenic drug featured in Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel Brave New World
. It is also the brand-name for Carisoprodol
, a centrally-acting muscle relaxant.
Siamese Dream
Siamese Dream is the second album by the American alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins, released on July 27, 1993 on Virgin Records. The album fused diverse influences such as shoegazing, dream pop, grunge, classic rock, heavy metal, and progressive rock.Despite recording sessions fraught...
by The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan frontman and James Iha , the band has included Jimmy Chamberlin , D'arcy Wretzky , and currently includes Jeff Schroeder Mike Byrne , and Nicole Fiorentino The Smashing...
. The song-writing credits list James Iha and Billy Corgan as co-authors, but Corgan claims that Iha only wrote the chord structure for the beginning of the song, and that Corgan himself wrote the rest. It remains a fan favorite, though it was not released as a single. One of the longer songs to appear on a Smashing Pumpkins album, it is said to have included up to 40 guitar tracks over the course of the song. A 2007 Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
poll rated the guitar solo
Guitar solo
In popular music, a guitar solo is a melodic passage, section, or entire piece of music written for an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. Guitar solos, which often contain varying degrees of improvisation, are used in many styles of popular music such as blues, jazz, rock and metal styles such...
as the 24th coolest in a list of 25. Corgan says the song "is based on the idea that a love relationship is almost the same as opium: it slowly puts you to sleep, it soothes you, and gives you the illusion of sureness and security." The song features a prominent piano figure by Mike Mills
Mike Mills
Michael Edward "Mike" Mills is an American multi-instrumentalist and composer who was a founding member of the alternative rock group R.E.M.. Though known primarily as a bass guitarist, backing vocalist, and pianist, his musical repertoire includes also keyboards, guitar, and percussion instruments...
of R.E.M. Soma
Haoma
Haoma is the Avestan language name of a plant and its divinity, both of which play a role in Zoroastrian doctrine and in later Persian culture and mythology. The Middle Persian form of the name is hōm, which continues to be the name in Modern Persian and other living Iranian languages.Sacred haoma...
was a ritual drink for ancient peoples of the Indus River Valley
Indus River
The Indus River is a major river which flows through Pakistan. It also has courses through China and India.Originating in the Tibetan plateau of western China in the vicinity of Lake Mansarovar in Tibet Autonomous Region, the river runs a course through the Ladakh district of Jammu and Kashmir and...
region and also the name of the (fictional) hallucinogenic drug featured in Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel Brave New World
Brave New World
Brave New World is Aldous Huxley's fifth novel, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Set in London of AD 2540 , the novel anticipates developments in reproductive technology and sleep-learning that combine to change society. The future society is an embodiment of the ideals that form the basis of...
. It is also the brand-name for Carisoprodol
Carisoprodol
Carisoprodol is a centrally-acting skeletal muscle relaxant. Carisoprodol is slightly soluble in water and freely soluble in alcohol, chloroform and acetone. The drug's solubility is practically independent of pH. Carisoprodol is manufactured and marketed in the United States by Meda Pharmaceuticals...
, a centrally-acting muscle relaxant.