Vapors of Morphine in Portland

Vapors of Morphine is an American low-rock trio formed in 2009 by Morphine saxophonist Dana Colley, drummer Jerome Deupree and singer and multi-instrumentalist Jeremy Lyons. The group carries forward Morphine’s baritone-heavy rock, blues and jazz vocabulary while writing its own material, heard on albums including A New Low and Fear & Fantasy. In 2009, the musicians came together to perform at Nel Nome del Rock in Palestrina, marking ten years since Morphine frontman Mark Sandman died during the festival. They subsequently toured internationally and developed the new group through a weekly residency at Atwood’s Tavern in Cambridge. The established concert format is a trio built around two-string slide bass, baritone and bass saxophones, guitar, vocals and drums. Dana Colley’s practice of playing two saxophones at once also remains part of performances that combine the trio’s records with songs associated with Mark Sandman.