Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Legion Air

Far West finds no-frills recording in an Encinitas American Legion.
Far West finds no-frills recording in an Encinitas American Legion.

Last year, when the Far West band went looking for a place to record, they settled on the American Legion post in Encinitas. “Our drummer, Tony Sanborn, lives just south of Oceanside,” says Lee Briante. “His mother works in the kitchen at the American Legion.” Far West played their first shows in the hall after the band formed more than a year ago.

“Tony said, ‘Hey, can we play?’ And [the legionnaires] said sure. They were interested in having entertainment. They opened the doors to us.” Far West would spend the next six to eight months honing their material in front of an audience of senior citizens, mostly veterans or relatives of veterans.

“When it came time to record, they were more than open and willing and said, ‘Sure, come on and use the stage.’” Briante likes the room, the tall ceilings, and the sound. “But they said they wouldn’t close up for us...that we would have to work around them.” He describes clinking glasses and deliveries and voices in the background of the recording.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“But we like that,” says Briante. “We like the whole spirit of working live rather than in a sterile studio environment.”

The Far West band is an alt-country quartet based in Los Angeles, although Sanborn still lives near Encinitas. “Americana. That pretty much defines us,” says Briante, a singer/guitarist from Eagle Rock, a community north of L.A.

“They have us back every month or so. It’s a lot of fun to go down there and play.” It’s a good, no-pressure venue, he says, to test new material. “They’re very open, and they give us feedback right away.” And then there is the ambiance factor. “It’s kind of half surf town, half biker town.” He thinks the building itself may have been a military barracks at one time.

Has the Legion atmosphere in any way informed Briante’s songwriting or the band’s performances? “We all agree in the band that having that venue outside of L.A., where it can be just a drag to play sometimes, is great. L.A. people have their arms crossed and there’s a lot of judgment going on.” He describes the Legion as having a honky-tonk vibe. “Everybody has a good time and nobody’s judgmental. In L.A., it’s not so easy to have fun.”

Briante says Far West will likely come back to the American Legion to record their next CD. Since there is no official stage, the band moves a pool table and sets up in a corner. But for purposes of recording, they spread out. “The drummer was in the dining hall, the bass player was in the kitchen, and I was in the bingo room.”

In addition to digital release, copies of the Far West’s self-titled CD are available at the Encinitas American Legion post.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Yo-Yo Ma, Wagner, and Tchaikovsky come to San Diego

Next Article

Coyote tracks in frail San Diego avocado grove

Second place winner in Reader neighborhood writing contest
Far West finds no-frills recording in an Encinitas American Legion.
Far West finds no-frills recording in an Encinitas American Legion.

Last year, when the Far West band went looking for a place to record, they settled on the American Legion post in Encinitas. “Our drummer, Tony Sanborn, lives just south of Oceanside,” says Lee Briante. “His mother works in the kitchen at the American Legion.” Far West played their first shows in the hall after the band formed more than a year ago.

“Tony said, ‘Hey, can we play?’ And [the legionnaires] said sure. They were interested in having entertainment. They opened the doors to us.” Far West would spend the next six to eight months honing their material in front of an audience of senior citizens, mostly veterans or relatives of veterans.

“When it came time to record, they were more than open and willing and said, ‘Sure, come on and use the stage.’” Briante likes the room, the tall ceilings, and the sound. “But they said they wouldn’t close up for us...that we would have to work around them.” He describes clinking glasses and deliveries and voices in the background of the recording.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“But we like that,” says Briante. “We like the whole spirit of working live rather than in a sterile studio environment.”

The Far West band is an alt-country quartet based in Los Angeles, although Sanborn still lives near Encinitas. “Americana. That pretty much defines us,” says Briante, a singer/guitarist from Eagle Rock, a community north of L.A.

“They have us back every month or so. It’s a lot of fun to go down there and play.” It’s a good, no-pressure venue, he says, to test new material. “They’re very open, and they give us feedback right away.” And then there is the ambiance factor. “It’s kind of half surf town, half biker town.” He thinks the building itself may have been a military barracks at one time.

Has the Legion atmosphere in any way informed Briante’s songwriting or the band’s performances? “We all agree in the band that having that venue outside of L.A., where it can be just a drag to play sometimes, is great. L.A. people have their arms crossed and there’s a lot of judgment going on.” He describes the Legion as having a honky-tonk vibe. “Everybody has a good time and nobody’s judgmental. In L.A., it’s not so easy to have fun.”

Briante says Far West will likely come back to the American Legion to record their next CD. Since there is no official stage, the band moves a pool table and sets up in a corner. But for purposes of recording, they spread out. “The drummer was in the dining hall, the bass player was in the kitchen, and I was in the bingo room.”

In addition to digital release, copies of the Far West’s self-titled CD are available at the Encinitas American Legion post.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

India Hawthorne is common in coastal gardens, Citrus trees are in full bloom

The vernal equinox is on March 19
Next Article

Pacific Beach – car thief's paradise

Take photos of your automobile and license plate
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.