From song writing to playing on stage, sophomore Waylon Binkley has seen everything his band, Steer Away, produces from start to finish. He received a scholarship to play music at River City Rock Camp during the summer after eighth grade, where he met his bandmates and got the idea to start the band.

“Everything that’s online from our band, I wrote,” Binkley said. “I played all the instruments and sang because the band formed after I already had the songs. I recorded, mixed, played all the instruments, sang all the songs and posted them on Spotify. I write all the music, and the band just plays live.”

Binkley’s bandmate and guitarist, Charlie Corwin, has been a part of the band since the beginning.

“After that camp was over, Waylon and I still wanted to play together,” Corwin said.  “He told me he had a project, Steer Away, and asked if I was interested in joining. I joined because I thought it’d be fun and I didn’t have much going on in my musical career.”

Binkley got interested in music when he was five because he listened to music with his dad, and his passion hasn’t dimmed since.

“[Playing music] makes me feel like this is my purpose, and it helps me convey stories and different messages,” Binkley said. “A lot of my songs have pretty deep meanings, and some of the lyrics are kind of nonsensical, but they have a deeper meaning than they seem. Playing music is my way of storytelling and expressing myself.”

Steer Away has also recently started performing live. Binkley has played five gigs since the band started, mostly at smaller venues like bars, outdoor events and festivals.

Since the band isn’t well known, they tend to play at smaller venues, which made Binkley nervous at first, but now the entire band is completely comfortable on stage.

“When I played my first couple shows, I was really nervous and we had a nervous energy on stage,” Binkley said. “We’re all nervous, but we played well. Over time, I learned to  enjoy it, and I don’t really feel nervous anymore, it’s more like excitement.”

These gigs vary from place to place, and students such as junior Elijah Brungardt have gone to support the band.

“I have [been to a gig] in Topeka,” Brungardt said. “We had a great time. Waylon was good, and It was nice to see him play and [have] all his hard work pay off.”

While most of the band members don’t go to the school, students such as Brungardt still listen to the band.

“I do like the band Steer Away,” Brungardt said. “Waylon is very impressive, especially for his age. At first, I was very concerned when I saw his poster, but he’s actually very good at writing music. His instrumentals are good, and his lyrics are catchy.”