Last night, at the first in RAVEN’s ‘Festival Afloat” concert series on Victoria’s Gorge waterway, we heard the Songhees story of Camossung and how the rocks in the the tidal inlet at the narrows were formed by Hayls, the creator, and how camas came to be the staple food of the Songhees people from knowledge keeper Brianna Dick, whose artwork also graced the show’s posters.

The event was a fundraiser for West Moberly First Nations’ Site C campaign, and raised a whopping $8.2K thanks to the generosity of folks who attended from canoes, kayaks, paddleboards and on-shore, watching and listening from across the water. 

ANSWER Drum Group, an ensemble of eight Indigenous women, filled the Gorge with passionate singing and drumming. Together with dancers wearing elaborate carved masks, eagle wing and bearskin regalia, they shared traditional beats, heartbeat rhythms, and powerful medicine songs.

They also invited everyone to share and sing along as a way of thanking the RAVEN community for standing strong on behalf of Indigenous justice-seekers.  To top off this golden evening, electric jazz ensemble Wes Carroll Confabulation pealed out a sweet set of tunes, lit by trumpet peals, fantastic guitar licks, and the deep vibrations of stand-up bass & drums.

Thank you to everyone who came out and supported West Moberly First Nations legal challenge to Site C Dam! Our next concert is happening on July 29th in Victoria. Tickets are available for purchase and we are DOUBLING all donations to the legal challenge against Site C right now! We also want to give a big thank you to to Denman Island Chocolate, Green City Builders, Avling Brewery, Persephone Brewing, Hide & Seek Coffee, and Fierce Kindness for sponsoring!

View more photos and videos from the show here.