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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (May 1, 2009)
OREGON S GAY/LESBIAN/BI/TRANS NEWSMAGAZINE SUBMITTED VOICES Nothing humdrum about drumming A friend forwarded me an email with a tantalizing headline: “First Saturday Queer Brothers Drum Circle (and Pot Luck).” “Oh my gods and goddesses,” it began, “We had such a good time at the last drum circle. The heat hung out in my head, toes tapping, for at least a week. Good times, good food, lots of cold beer and no neighbor complaints.” Of course I needed to experience it for myself. Feeling tense, I made my way to a con ventional-looking house on a somewhat busy street in Southeast Portland. From outside I heard a faint beating, but I wasn’t certain whether it was drums or my heart. I took a deep breath, smiled and opened the door. Inside, about ten guys in their early 30s sat, stood or knelt, each beating on a drum. There was no leader and, it seemed, no rules. “Well,” I thought, “as Michael Jackson said: Just beat it.” I nodded hello and made my way to an empty spot on a couch, stepping around an assortment of drums and other noisemakers on the floor. Unsure of what to do, I placed my drum between my knees, closed my eyes and listened. Pretty soon my hands began rubbing the instrument’s silky skin. I started lightly tapping. Then tapping a little louder. And louder. Without consciously realizing it, I had joined the riotous cacophony, which OUT GOING b/ Floyd Sklaver continued for about twenty minutes. During a break, I introduced myself to the host, an artist who said to call him August, “nothing more, nothing less.” He began host ing drumming parties during the summer at Sauvie Island and now holds them monthly at his home, where his paintings cover the walls. The drumming began again. Some guys looked joyous, others intense. One tapped a blue plastic detergent container with a drum stick. Another knelt and held an 18-inch drum between his knees, playing a steady rhythm that thumped like a heartbeat. The sonic pat tern of his instrument took control and soon we were all matching it. On the couch next to me, a young hipster blew into a didgeridoo, its low, resonant pitch adding to the primal experience. The music swelled as drummer after drummer joined the chorus. August grabbed a whistle, tooted it three times and threw it into the middle of the circle. Someone on the periphery started to dance. The door opened and two newcomers walked in. August let out a welcoming howl and we all joined him like wolves baying at the moon. We continued like this for three hours. When we were in a rhythm together, the sensations reverberated through the air. There was an unspoken intimacy between us, and • I imagined this must be what it felt like to be in a band. At one point, it even sounded as though the drums were singing, as if little sprites circled in the air around me. Floyd gets his rhythm on at the First I don’t think I was very good. But it didn’t Saturday Queer Brothers Drum Circle matter. My heart pounded with excitement, I felt joyful, and the smile I had originally plas Morgan Hawes shares, “Plastic surgery tered on as a defense mechanism became real. turns me on. It’s an opportunity to feel so The beat stayed with me for days. So when much better about myself and it gives me I attended the monthly Salon Q_gathering, I confidence." Greg Fletcher says that his boy asked those assembled what excites them and friend of twenty years, Bvron Page, and their makes their hearts pound. two Dobermans “put a smile on my face." Rob For some it is physical activity. Darold Lamagno is turned on by good conversation, Slack gets excited running through the streets and Kelly Lynch says her switch is flipped by of his Vancouver neighborhood. Grayson “Makers on the rocks and tight Diesel jeans.” Kramer finds that Pilates makes his heart For those of you who aren’t comfortable pound, although he says, “I go to a private club making small talk at Salon Q, I heartily with a bunch of old ladies, so I need to get recommend drumming. If you’re interested, into a zone with the music.” Michael Rouse e-mail August at bustedzipper@hotmail.com. gets his kicks by “thrill seeking, skydiving and It’s a way of making a big impact, even if you anything fast.” And Michael Sweeten says aren’t Out Going, the “thrill of the unknown” gets him excited, F loyd S klavf . r is looking for new ad particularly “snowboarding a new place and ventures and experiences. E-mail your ideas to meeting new-people.” floydsklaver@comcast. net. want action that's all shocks DO NOT DISTURB ask/tell about HIV status - then decide how to heat things up Mult Co. Health Dept. 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