BOWS & ARROWS

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Neal Morgan is a drummer/singer based in Portland. He’s accompanied Joanna Newsom on drums since 2006, but his solo music has become increasingly popular as well. He described playing solo versus with others as “equally rewarding and fun and artistically challenging.” Of course, playing solo offers Neal a greater opportunity to improvise, and he writes all his own songs. “I am not sure how I’d describe my style,” said Neal. “On record, songs are built from improvisation, first impulses. Much has changed in my playing since I began…I like where I am right now.” Neal’s style is somewhat different purely because there aren’t many solo drummer/singers out there. ”I haven’t seen a solo drumming and singing performance…but I know other people do it,” said Neal. “Drumming and singing is our oldest music and forms the core of the music of cultures all around the world.”

Neal came out with his debut album in 2009 and self-released a new album, In the Yard, in January 2012. Neal said the expressionist painter Philip Guston provided a lot of inspiration for him for this new album; the cover art is one of Guston’s paintings.

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Sad Horse is also from Portland. They’ve been playing together since 2007, when they got off to somewhat of an unconventional start. “Our first show was a Halloween party that year, and then our first club show was with Pierced Arrows a couple weeks later, said band member Geoff. “We crashed the show – we weren’t supposed to play, but we called up the booker and said “we’re coming down, we’re playing first” – not too many people know about that, but it’s true.”

Sad Horse’s approach to their sound is similarly relaxed. “When we started we just wanted to play as fast and as loud as possible,” said Geoff “Now we’re starting to move into some more melodic territory – a little less shouting and a little more singing…Live shows we still try to rock as hard as we can.” Geoff described the band’s style as simply punk rock (“fast songs on drums and guitar with boy/girl shouted vocals”) but noted that “there’s an improv element, especially live, which isn’t always obvious, but which careful listeners will notice.  And there are also tricky parts that — I think we do this well — don’t necessarily sound tricky.”

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Show starts at 8

$5 Door Charge

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