Wednesday, May 15th, 7:30 PM Small Town Artillery, with opening set by Salt Spring Island’s Safiya Labelle

THE SMALL TOWN ARTILLERY COLLECTIVE is the moniker under which brothers Tom & Derek van Deursen release and perform their signature style of music. The name comes from strong roots to their rural Kootenay upbringing, ties that have tattooed their hearts indelibly and deeply influenced their art. The name references the “artillery” of rural community living – where people come together to share resources in times of need, understand the benefit of ritual and respect, and are encouraged – not always by choice, sometimes by necessity – to work through their differences out of a need to share what little there is; like the grocery store. Or the fire truck. The belief that these values – honesty, joy, accountability, curiosity, empathy – are weaponry for good is a shared tool of the van Deursen brothers and their music. This remote experimentation has been honed in over 400 shows together since 2003. 2023 has brought with it the loss of their beloved founding bandmate and bassist Carson, instrumental (pun intended, he woulda liked that) in helping shape the raw talent of the brothers into a sound that felt like something all its own and world class.

Their live show is a crackling good time, full of emotional dynamics, trumpet and violin earworms, guitarmonies and feeling. 2024’s touring outfit is 6 strong, featuring Kyle Vaughan (Year Of The Wolf) on Guitar, Safiya Labelle on Violin and Vocal, Jocelyn Waugh on Trumpet, and Sam Schuette on Bass.