The Province

Music and dining on Saltspring

World-class performers and farm-to-table food come together

- STUART DERDEYN sderdeyn@postmedia.com twitter.com/stuartderd­eyn

If you ever sat in Jericho Park on a warm July night at sunset taking in the Vancouver Folk Music Festival, you know how much the setting can add to enjoying the sounds. Festivals the world over select locations boasting both value and view for a reason.

Here in B.C., we are blessed with many such venues. One of the coolest has to be the Pitchfork Social.

Billed as a place “where singers, songwriter­s, pluckers, pickers and storytelle­rs share their soul-enriching talent with the most gracious audience of music lovers,” the annual 10-concert series takes place in a purpose-built hut in the woods near a pond on Bullock Lake Farm on Salt Spring Island. Fans take in worldclass performers, enjoy a farm-to-table menu crafted with local ingredient­s, savour locally brewed craft beer and cider, and it rocks. And, unlike the messes left behind at major music festivals, Pitchfork Social aims to be a zero-waste event.

“The event originally started at our house and it was called the South End Grooveyard at that time, after a great R&B club in New Westminste­r back in the ’60s called the Grooveyard,” said organizer David Youngsun.

“There was a bandstand built on-site and we held shows outside, but when we sold that place, we moved the series over to the Bullock Farm. Organic farm owners Molly Wilson and Zack Hemstreet do the most incredible things with pop-up restaurant­s and other special events and we were beyond happy to be able to work with them.”

The Grooveyard ran for five years and averaged around 160 people per event. When it relocated to not-the-South-end, the name changed to Pitchfork Social. Youngsun admits that being in the new venue means that they can get a few more people in the audience, and it also means getting some bigger name acts, as well as allowing for more adventurou­s food offerings.

Although not a profession­al promoter, Youngsun is the kind of fan that others can trust to have an ear for winners. He has worked with A-list acts over the years, and circumstan­ce has much to do with that, he says.

“Our first year put us on the map, with Sam Baker and then Mary Gauthier being our first two shows,” he said. “In the Americana scene, they are big names, and that meant we didn’t spend years building up to those sort of artists. We jumped right in.”

Word got out that the events were good for artists and attendees alike. Names such as Cowboy Junkies, Richard Thompson and Grammy Award-winning country gospel singer Mike Farris have appeared over the years. While the concert series is a success, Youngsun admits that it is a labour of love.

“It’s impossible to make any money doing this because of where we are and how many,” he said. “But once you know that, you can approach it with a break-even mindset and we work with loads of community support, from our volunteers to the ticket holders.” Every year is a sellout. And in many cases, the artists that play on Salt Spring often don’t have gigs lined up in Vancouver or Victoria. A lot of the acts add in an island date if they are touring the Olympic Peninsula or the San Juan Islands. The first half of the 2018 series is booked and it’s another impressive list:

Steve Dawson’s Black Hen Revue (April 26), Pharis and Jason Romero Full Band (May 12), 3 Women and the Truth (Mary Gauthier, Eliza Gilkyson, Gretchen Peters; July 11), Darlingsid­e (July 16), Greg Brown (Aug. 24), and Mike Farris Full Band (Sept. 20) are all lined up. The complete 10-concert season will be announced in March.

Tickets go fast, but Youngsun notes that accommodat­ion goes faster. Purchasers have the option of buying the full meal deal or just the concert. Most choose both, as restaurant­s tend to be busy.

“We’re not the only game in town, and in the summer months, the island just packs up everywhere,” he said. “Finding a place to stay early and booking as soon as possible is what we always recommend. Plus, we really stress the social in what we do, and hope people come and get to enjoy the food, the people and the performanc­e.”

Anyone wanting to be on top of the ticket sale announceme­nts and any other informatio­n can get on the mailing list at pitchforks­ocial.com.

Do you know of a really cool local venue in your area of B. C.? Let Stuart Derdeyn know for possible future features

 ??  ?? The Pitchfork Social series of musical events take place in a purpose-built hut in the woods near a pond on Bullock Lake Farm on Salt Spring Island.
The Pitchfork Social series of musical events take place in a purpose-built hut in the woods near a pond on Bullock Lake Farm on Salt Spring Island.

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