Music is his passion

Brandt Fanion harbors a dream shared by many boys his age: He wants to be a rock musician. But Fanion has taken it one step further – he’s actually started a rock band.

Days of Serenity was founded by the Lakeside High School sophomore and his friend, Steven Storch. Members include Corrie Kennedy as the keyboardist, Sean Stoudt on bass, Storch as back-up guitarist and Brandt on vocals and lead guitar. The band has played at a fundraising concert at the high school and to a paying audience last December at the Empyrean Cafe. Fanion performed the national anthem at the opening ceremony of the National Freestyle Motorcross competition held in Spokane Arena.

“Music is my passion.” Fanion said, and music figure prominently in his plans for the future. He wants to go on to college for a music degree, a business degree and a psychology degree. A business degree, he said, will help him manage his music business someday. He and his friends would like to start a music stadium – a complex with a concert house, recording studio, coffeehouse and graphic design center. How about that psychology degree? Fanion said he is fascinated by how the audience responds to the stage and how musicians interact with the audience. Knowledge of psychology will help him understand and command the attention of his audience, he said. Besides, if music does not work out, he will have something to fall back on.

Largely self-taught, Brandt thinks his musical talent may be genetic. His father, who died when Brandt was 2, was an accomplished musician and had contract with a recording studio in Nashville.

Besides music, Brandt Fanion is an Eagle Scout. For his Eagle Scout project last summer, he took on the task of redoing the press box at Lakeside High School. With the help of Scoutmaster Al Borman, Fanion and his teammates logged 214 hours on the project.

“I didn’t know how to do anything like this when I started, but I do now,” Fanion said proudly. “I can build a house all by myself now if I have to!”

Fanion said he initially didn’t want to get involved in Scouting, but was encouraged by his mother.

“Perhaps she wanted me to have some good male influence,” he said. “Now I am glad she did. And I am glad I stuck with it “Basically I learn everything from it, camping, building and so on. I now know how to do things.”

That’s a lot of achievement to be proud of for a 15-year-old. In the meantime, besides homework, Fanion said he is having a great time with his band. Sometimes the band turns it into a tool of doing some more community goodness. On Feb. 6, Days of Serenity was part of a school fundraising concert for a local family whose house burned down.