Ecotone 2013: A brilliant event with an even better soundtrack

(Photo Credit: Valaura Vedan) James Roy, lead singer of JoyfulDoor, performing at Ecotone 2013 in Kelowna

What is Ecotone? In climatology, an Ecotone is a meeting place for communities, a place where integration and commingling occurs. That makes it a very apt name for an event that recently took place in Kelowna…

Ecotone 2013, an “Okanagan underground creative gathering known as Conduit,” happened this past weekend, on Saturday February 2^nd, at Kelowna’s Rotary Centre for the Arts. In short, Ecotone is a community gathering featuring live music, visual artists, art installations, spoken word poetry and an assortment of vendors selling a variety of crafts and services. The whole gathering is aimed at promoting “local, organic and zero-waste” activities. It was a fantastic evening. In fact, I would go as far as to say that, in Kelowna, there was no better place to be this past Saturday night!

(Photo Credit: Valaura Vedan) Stephen Cipes of the Summerhill African Drumming Group

This was Ecotone’s sixth year. The gathering is put on by the Conduit Collective in partnership with the Okanagan Greens Society “in creative collaboration with the pan Okanagan creative community.” Now, as this is a music column, I want to talk about the delectable array of music that Ecotone 2013 played host to. If you’d like to learn more about the event as a whole, watch this detailed, informative and thoroughly enjoyable Welcome to Kelowna Ecotone 2013 summary video. Oh, you’ll even see yours truly on the receiving end of ear acupuncture! Yes, that's right!

(Photo Credit: Valaura Vedan) Vincent Jones in the midst of an ear acupuncture treatment

Anyway, let’s get to the tunes. There was a truly eclectic sonic tapestry strummed, sang, banged, picked and plucked at Ecotone 2013. The event began in the late afternoon, at 4pm. I arrived within the first hour, just in time to take in the Summerhill African Drumming Group. The music continued on from there with tunes from the likes of Killer Panda, James Roy (JoyfulDoor), Windmills, Winter Provincial, HardFunk, Van Damsel, Wild Son and many more. I haven’t named everyone here, but head over to http://ecotonefestival.ca/schedule/ for a comprehensive list of the performers that shared their talents. The evening ended with the funk and groove session that is Rumpus Room. All in all, it was a truly splendid event. Make a note of it for next year!

There were some delightful musical performances at Ecotone 2013, but I'd like to single out Kamloops band, Van Damsel, for special praise. You may already be familiar with this indie rock band as they often play in Kelowna. However, if you're not, check out episode 21 of the Music City Podcast or visit the Van Damsel Bandcamp page. Van Damsel's set was full of energetic authority and it really drew a reaction from the crowd. Their brisk guitar riffs and ebullient vocals inspired two people to dance. In turn, the combination of cracking music and the flailing limbs and lust for shape throwing displayed by the first brave couple to move onto the makeshift dance floor ,encouraged yet more people to dance. Before long, the music of Van Damsel had everyone within sight dancing and grooving as though it was 1999! In short, Van Damsel rocked the party atmosphere to new heights, so kudos to them.

(Photo Credit: Valaura Vedan) Van Damsel playing at Kelowna's Ecotone 2013 at the Rotary Centre for The Arts

(Photo Credit: Valaura Vedan) Artwork at the Rotary Centre of The Arts, currently on display through February 2013

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the musicians, poets, artists, exhibitors, organizers and everyone else who helped to make Ecotone 2013 such a wonderful evening. They ensured that Ecotone 2013 was a brilliant event with an even better soundtrack! If you missed Ecotone 2013, the art installations are going to be up at the Rotary Centre for the Arts for the rest of February, so you can still go and check those out!

Do you want to contact Vince? E-mail him at: vince@welcometokelowna.com or connect with him on Twitter, Google+ or LinkedIn. You can also hear Vince play some of Canada's best indie music from emerging artists every Wednesday on the Music City Podcast.