Three talented Camas High School (CHS) seniors, Sam Brailler, Willem Martin and Bryce Walker put together a band, known as “Teem.” This band consists of themselves and CHS juniors Addie Stewart and Peyton Jones.
Martin and Walker used the creation of the band as their senior project.
For their CHS performance, Walker was on electric guitar, Brailler played the drums and Martin played the other acoustic pieces. Stewart and Jones largely did the vocals for the performance.
Martin wanted to put together a band for various reasons. One is the fact that some of the instruments did not work well to play alone. Martin also enjoyed the idea of collaborative music. He reached out to Brailler to ask if he wanted to play the drums for the band; he accepted the offer.
Walker never thought about having a full band until he realized how many songs he was able to play on the guitar.
Not only did Martin decide who should be in the band because of musical talent, but also because he wanted to get to know others and spend time with people who shared the same musical interests.
“Willem saw me play for the school musical and approached me a few days later. He complimented my skill and mentioned that his band needed a more reliable drummer. That’s when I joined,” Brailler said.
Martin and Walker grew up learning guitar together. They influenced each other’s music tastes in several ways and encouraged each other throughout their childhood and up until now.
“Bryce has been my biggest musical influence, pulling me towards genres that I wouldn’t have tried on my own,” Martin said.
The band has created new connections with others and has also had a substantial impact on the members’ musical skills.
“Giving each other notes and knowing how each of us kind of function helped a lot to be so close and comfortable with each other,” Walker said.
Brailler has cleared out his entire garage to make space to practice. They are hoping to get several gigs over the summer. Brailler is planning to join the pit orchestra in college, playing the drums.
Although the three seniors have differing college plans, they are still planning to make the most out of the summer, playing and creating music together.
