Biography Samuel Locke Ward

Samuel Locke-Ward is an indie rock/folk songwriter and multi-instrumentalist based in Iowa City, Iowa. In addition to his own prolific output, among Locke-Ward's claims to fame are having sat in with The Violent Femmes and one "disastrous" show as bassist of The Frogs.

Locke-Ward, then Sam Locke, started playing as a teenager in the band Yellow 5 in his hometown of Ottumwa, IA in the mid-1990s, then formed The Eggnogs with Jason Bolinger (later of She Swings, She Sways) and brother Josh Bolinger, both previously of Rusty Metal Primer. The Eggnogs became popular around Iowa for their combination of hooky melodic songwriting, noisy guitar playing, and Locke's own twisted lyrical humor and unhinged persona.

After The Eggnogs disbanded in the early 2000s, Locke relocated to Iowa City and began performing and recording solo (self-releasing the Harness The Power Of Lightning EP under the name Samb Eggnog) and with various bands, including Trophy Beau, The Kickass Tarantulas, and most notably Miracles Of God, and marrying musician and craft artist Grace (Sinclair) Locke-Ward (Mr. Blanding's Dream House, Petit Mal, Leslie and The Ly's).

In 2004, while on tour with Miracles Of God, Locke-Ward was struck by a car with a drunk driver, sustaining major injuries to his legs requiring reconstructive surgery. While laid up in the hospital, he recorded Boombox By Bedside on a boombox cassette recorder, released on cassette by Unread Records in 2005. The incident and the recovery that followed have inspired some of Locke-Ward's songs such as "Ketamine."

Locke-Ward's extensive touring of the continental United States and prolific stream of solo and collaborative recordings continues through to the present day, including more Miracles Of God material as well as collaborations with Darren Brown of Boy Dirt Car and Texaar, resulting in the 2010 album From The Privilege Of The Grave, and also Manhorse The Meatbag III, Simon Joyner, The BassTurd. Locke-Ward has also led touring backing bands for Harvey Sid Fisher and Joe Jack Talcum with members drawn from Miracles Of God and Locke-Ward's own current backing band Samuel Locke Ward and The Boo-Hoos which itself includes Grace Locke-Ward and members of Petit Mal and Lipstick Homicide.

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