Trevor Murray

The East Ender

By Sara Hogan and Jessie Banhazl

Trevor Murray

Age: 29

Bar of choice: The East Ender

Hometown: New Durham, NH

Drink of choice: Miller High Life/tequila and soda

You’d be hard pressed to find a more raucous, rowdy, and supportive environment than a karaoke bar, and the East Ender on Middle Street in Portland is no exception.

Step into the East Ender’s tiny downstairs room on any night from 8pm on, and you’ll be greeted by dancing, thunderous group singing, and all-around positive vibes. You’ll see brilliant, professional-level performances from everyday people you bump into around town. You’ll also see some sloppy tourists bumbling their way through a tune they sort of know the words to. It doesn’t matter. Everyone is welcome, everyone gets their chance in the spotlight, and everyone’s a star.

To learn more about what makes karaoke at the East Ender so special, we sat down with bar regular Trevor Murray. He’s the president of the East Ender’s karaoke club, as well as a professional Dungeons and Dragons “Dungeon Master.”

How did you become a regular at East Ender?

I started coming here because I’ve always liked karaoke and theater. I had come here once with some friends, and I was like, “Wow, I really missed doing karaoke!”

How did the karaoke club come about?

Music feels so inaccessible because it’s something that we generally associate with skill or talent. But karaoke is popular because it’s a way to dispel that illusion. Everyone knows a song that they love to sing even if they don’t think they’re good at singing it. The club is a way to push people and have them feel more comfortable singing. I really love seeing how much we’re lifting people up.

What are your duties as club president?

I use the word “club president” very tongue in cheek, but it was me starting a group chat, doing all the organization, making sure everybody’s informed of our plans. The club is comprised of mostly people I know. I’ve got a few people I’ve met at East Ender that I’m going to start adding to the community.

What songs do you like to perform?

I love ballads. I love belting, so I really like to sing Elton John. “Lips of an Angel” by Hinder is one of my favorite power ballads. We’ve done “Love Shack.” I’ve done some Meatloaf that I really liked. That’s kind of the vibe.

We heard there are theme nights at the East Ender. What’s that about?

The theme idea came from the two co-vice presidents, Molly and Julianne. It was Molly’s birthday, and she wanted to do a theme of songs that came out in 1996, the year she was born. Then we realized how fun it was to do specific themes. We did “Party in the USA” for Fourth of July. We also have emo night, ballads, and “stepdad rock,” which is like “dad rock” but for your stepdad who’s 20 years younger.

What do you do when you’re not belting out ballads?

I’m a freelancer. I run tabletop role playing games (RPGs). It’s a lot of writing and performing. I also work a couple days a week at Black Cow.

What does it mean to be a “Dungeon Master,” and how do you run role playing games?

The RPG is split into the Game Master and the Dungeon Master, who makes the story. Every other player has their own particular character. I create everything else and then help the players create their characters and then just facilitate the game for them. I was an English and Theater major in college, so it’s a perfect intersection of the writing, performing, and genre stuff that I’m already into. I feel really lucky to be able to perform and be paid to do writing and just engaging my community.

Does the karaoke club have a favorite East Ender staff member?

Favorite is such a loaded term, but I gotta give a big shout out to Rachel because we’re always here on the nights that she runs karaoke. She is always so grateful to have us there, and it’s always really fun to be a part of the night with her. It’s been really cool to feel like regulars in that regard.

Know an interesting bar regular?

Recommend them to us by e-mailing theregularsmaine@gmail.com.