Behind the Scenes of a Teenage Drummer Boy

Nate began his love for music at 4, starting with a wiggles guitar. He shares that the guitar was colorful, played songs, and had buttons to press. He reflects on the memory fondly, sharing that he found singing along to the songs very fun when he was younger. Nate also shared that guitar was just one of his points of interest. He said,

“I would also bang on pots and pans”

His first official introduction to playing instruments wasn’t until later in life. He began to play percussion in the 5th grade, but it posed some challenges for him. Some of the band teachers wanted different instruments in their ensemble and even tried to prevent Nate from playing drums.

“I really fought for it. They tried to make me not play percussion. They tried to get me to play trombone.”

Even though the teachers tried to work around it, Nate was set on his intentions and ended up getting what he worked for.

“I knew I wanted to play drum set,” Said Nate. 

Since picking up percussion in 5th grade, he has worked on his skills tremendously, now in both concert band and the marching band. He followed his roots of the wiggles.

Despite being able to play pieces from some of his favorite artists such as Green Day and Blink 182, he has created multiple songs of his own involving both instuments. From the process of writing and playing, he has created impressive songs.

Nate said, “I feel really proud of a few pieces I’ve written for Jump Break Point. One of them is called Eyes, the other one’s called Run by Me.”

Other than elementary band teachers, he has had some other issues along the path of music. Some former members of his bands weren’t willing to put in the work or effort to be a part of it in the first place. Because of this, Some of his bands have split apart and are no longer together. Another issue that prevents people from joining is not being determined to put in the effort or practice.

He shared, “A lot of making a band is finding people who are committed and willing to do the work”

Curating the right group comes with a lot of trial and error—the people who don’t care either never get a chance to become a part of the band or become the reason that it breaks apart. Nate has gone through this time and time again, mentioning that some people just aren’t the right fit for his groups. He said,

“The main issue I have is commitment. And if people aren’t committed to things, then it’ll never really work out how you want.

Out of all the six different bands he’s been involved in, Nate enjoys the ones with truly dedicated people. His current bands are Sleepy’s Dead, Say When, and Jump BreakPoint. The most recent performance involving all of the bands was Harfst Fest. Hosted in his own backyard, Harfst Fest is a small show that has been running for three years. 

“Oh, [my] favorite year was definitely this year. I really like performing and playing with my bands.” 

Nate feels very pleased doing what he loves and seeing all of the people he loves. Even when bands or people don’t show up, he moves on and continues to play. 

He shares that one of his favorite parts of Harfst Fest is, “Seeing people I know. And I finally get to show those people I know the music that I’ve been playing and writing and cover songs.”

A lively audience of people he knows makes him feel accomplished. Putting together and organizing bands, learning the music, and performing are not easy. Especially when the venue has no cell service. Regardless, many family members and friends show up to enjoy the performance.

“I like when people know the song and they sing along or they dance around or something”

With this successful year of Harfst Fest also came a few new bands. Both Sleepy’s Dead and Say When were created shortly before the show. Even with the new bands, Nate always comes back to the band he has worked the most with.

“I really liked playing with Jump Breakpoint. I’m not supposed to pick favorites. It’s kind of like kids. Don’t tell them.”

After a successful show, Nate started planning for the future. He loved playing in each of the bands but needed intermissions to hydrate, regroup, and just relax for a second. Because of this, he has hopes to expand Harfst Fest to more bands without him playing in every single one.

“I’m putting together a club at the school called the Rock Groups Club for people to make bands so I don’t have to be in every band in Muscatine.”

Although the next Harfst Fest is a ways away, he already has some ideas for the next show in the making. 

“For Stage Fright, I’m hoping to somehow reserve the auditorium for a night once a semester for the bands to perform. And hopefully, start moving out into the town a little bit away from just the school so that we have more of a Muscatine music scene”

One big goal of his is to have more bands perform at Harfst Fest, more people creating their own bands, and more involvement with it all. He said,

“That’s a dream of mine, is to have a stadium of people singing along to my songs. That would be cool.”

Besides big dreams and loud bands, Nate is a very down-to-earth kind of guy. Among his friends, he’s amusing and likes to crack jokes. When he settles down, he will always be able to listen if you need someone to talk to. He wants to leave a good impression and be remembered as a good person. He said,

“I want people to think that I was talented. Think that I had good ideas and that I was a nice guy.”

Besides the sound of his music, he wants his songs to resonate with people, and make them feel something. Having memorable lyrics with true meaning is one of his priorities while writing.

“I want people to be able to connect with the words I write. Or be able to sing along.”

Overall, Nate is a very intriguing guy. Being involved with marching band, jazz, musical pit, 3 different bands and president of stagefright takes a lot out of a guy. I hope this story helped you learn a little more about him. For more stories, always check the MHS Auroran website! If you are interested in Mhs Rock Groups, email the legend himself at @[email protected]

P.S. go listen to Nate’s music!!