Tonight: The Long War a highlight of August Street Fest performances

Vancouver-based indie band The Long War know they have a journey ahead of them when it comes to proving their staying power in the Canadian music scene. The group had been together less than a year, and had performed only a handful of times when they found themselves thrown into the deep end of early band success when they won the 2017 CBC Searchlight Competition.

The band itself began its formation only a few years ago in a somewhat inherently organic manner. Singer/songwriter Jarrett Lee first connected and collaborated with vocalist/guitarist Chad Gilmour after meeting with him after a show in Ottawa. They then added vocalist/drummer Neil Williamson and bassist Carson Webber along the way. After their Searchlight win, Lee’s sister vocalist/keyboardist Jess Lee joined, rounding out the group at five.

After their Searchlight win, and consequently releasing their first album Landscapes, the five-member band found themselves touring across Canada. That tour included a stop at Revelstoke Arts Council’s Street Fest last summer.

“The band found success very soon, so it’s almost like working backwards,” said singer/songwriter Jarrett Lee. “We have this image of success, but we aren’t really there yet. We’re still going through it, still trying to prove to ourselves we’re more than just a contest band.”

Winning the competition came with a number of prestigious awards — and hard work. Members of The Long War were provided with a residency and recording opportunity at The Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, performances at the Banff Centre’s “Performance in the Park” and at the National Art Centre in Ottawa and the 2017 CBCMusic.ca Festival. The Long War was also commissioned to collaborate with fellow Canadian singer Royal Wood to create an original song for Canada’s 150 celebrations. The result was Oh Canada (Carry the Flame). The recording of that song also includes vocals of a 30-student high school choir from North Vancouver that happened to be in Banff at the same time.

“It was really fun. It was a nice collaboration and neat to be commissioned like that,” said Lee.

The Long War also collaborated with Royal Wood for a few other songs on Landscapes, the album they recorded while at the Banff Centre. Lee describes the album as being a collection of songs he has written over a long period of time, along with a few new songs.

The Long War is looking forward to their return to Revelstoke Street Fest. Lee said he thinks the free nightly music offered during the summer should be offered in other communities.

“Revelstoke is such a beautiful place. I love the mountains. We’re going to do our best to show you a good time.”

The Long War perform, along with Small Town Artillery, on Tuesday, August 21 from 6:30–9:30 p.m. in Grizzly Plaza. This is a free, outdoor event, open to all ages. Street Fest runs every night throughout the summer until Sunday, August 26. To find a complete list of bands, see the Revelstoke Mountaineer Calendar on pages 8–10.