For nearly two years, junior Damare Evans experiments with electronic music, amounting to hundreds of followers and a full library of tunes.

https://soundcloud.com/damareevans

Picture a high school musician. Was an image of a marching uniform-clad teen armed with a clarinet or trombone conjured up? Or perhaps a punk shredding a beaten electric Fender appeared? Well, junior Damare Evans is here to flip that stereotype on its head.
Under the username “DamarE” on SoundCloud, Evans produced 45 tracks, some boasting thousands of plays, and has accrued over 500 followers. All these feats achieved without once using a conventional instrument. Crafting with a beat pad and the computer program Ableton, Evans defines his music as something different.
“Experimental…” Evans said. “That’s probably the best way to describe it.”
In early 2014, Evans had a realization that would propel him into the creation of music.
“I always heard other people make music and, like, most of it sounded the same. I’d go on SoundCloud, twelve people would upload twelve tracks and they mostly sound similar.” Evans said, “I was like, ‘well, this suck. Why doesn’t anyone make something different?’ Then I was like ‘Oh why don’t I try it?’ So then I made music.”
It’s this sense of musical one-upmanship that inspires Evans in his work. Listening to the music of others, Evans parses themes and sections that he enjoys and works to make something better. But getting the idea for a project is just the beginning of the process.
“I procrastinate,” Evans said. “It should take like three hours, but it’ll take like twelve hours because I’ll take a break or play video games or something.”
But when a new song does release and the “likes” start rolling in, it is clear that the fans enjoy what they hear, some of whom attend NHS as well.
“I think [Evans’ music] is really well put together and really unique,” Junior Becca Wood said. “I’ve never heard anything like it.”
To the benefit of fans, like Wood, Evans doesn’t plan to stop soon.
“This is what I want to do,” Evans said. “It’s like the only thing I’m good at. I wouldn’t want to do anything else. Because I’m lazy, I’ve never released a full project. But I’m working on one currently.”
In the end, Evans hopes to, through his music, inspire others the way he was when he started.
“I would want them to make music themselves. Or even find something they’re good at too. That’s maximum,” Evans said. “Minimum reaction I’d want is like, ‘Oh this is cool.’”

Use the widget above to sample Evans’ music!