Vic Garcia's Blog

photo by ryan romero

TWO FRIENDS, ONE JOURNEY CROSS-COUNTRY AND AN ENDLESS PASSION FOR MUSIC
The Westar is Los Angeles’ newest rock band; their journey and their music make for quite an introduction

Ethan Carlson and Vic Garcia met while attending the University of Miami. Since graduating, the two have kept busy writing, producing and performing around the world. Carlson (guitar & programming) is also an award-winning producer/engineer and worked with Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees for the past 4 years. Garcia (vocals & guitar) worked as touring guitarist/keyboardist for Latin super-star Paulina Rubio, while writing for artists such as Alejandra Alberti and Paola Beschin. Their previous band, Vic Kingsley toured as support for the Ballas-Hough band, performed at SXSW 07&08, and released a critically acclaimed album titled These Frequencies.
Recently the two friends embarked on a new musical project and relocated to a new city to harbor it. As Carlson was filling his gas tank to leave for LA, he noticed the sign read “Westar.” The name stuck as a representation of their new journey. The name The Westar, has a lot to do with moving west to achieve success and later returning east to rest your bones. Garcia’s voyage west involved hitch-hiking, sleeping in airports, eventually making it to San Francisco and trekking down towards Los Angeles to meet with Carlson and recruit players for their new vision.
Their EP, Turn on the Dark, is scheduled for release this winter. The songs demonstrate pop influence with innovative layering, while masking the complexities with hooks and emotion. Among the standout tracks is “Running With My Hands Up,” a song dealing with the media’s overuse of shock value to entertain viewers; the images discussed in the song come from 9/11 footage, and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.  Also on the EP, the beautiful assonance of Cabin House displays a different vibe for the alternative rockers. This song was inspired by the deaths of several boy scouts after a tornado ravaged their camping grounds.
These hard-working musicians have moved to LA and have been couch-hopping and ramblin’ in true troubadour fashion. As Garcia says “The best places to sleep are the places where you can wake up at anytime in the night, grab a guitar and write a song.” Carlson adds that, “while the music industry is in its toughest state, every artist has access to the tools for success. It’s those working the hardest that rise to the top.”