Edmonton might be the home of the Derina Harvey Band, but the band is from the east coast. They’re bringing their signature Celtic Rock sound on a tour of Saskatchewan. They will be in Yorkton on Apr. 19 at the Anne Portnuff Theatre as part of the Yorkton Arts Council’s Stars for Saskatchewan series.
Harvey, her husband and drummer Steve Pinsent, and guitarist Scott Greene all met in the ‘90s at the same school, the College of the North Atlantic in Stephenville, NL. The band members began to move west, with everyone popping up in Edmonton, AB. This was convenient.
“I was performing as a solo here in Edmonton, travelling around playing five and six nights a week as a solo entertainer. A local venue said, ‘hey, you sound great, we can put you on the weekend, do you have a band?’ I said, ‘ah, I think I can get a band pretty quick.’ From there, the Derina Harvey Band was born, pretty much for fun.”
It was born for fun, but they began to get a following, which wanted music to take home, leading to the band’s first, self-titled album. Their second album, Rove and Go, came in 2016, with more fiddle music and more music written by the band. The first album was effectively their early live show, with the songs that went over well with the audience. For their second album, they included more original music. That’s the path the band is taking with their next album.
“Now we’re trying to include music we are writing and hoping that the audience will enjoy our perspective of Celtic culture, western culture, and our own song writing.”
The band has grown as well, and now consists of Steve Pinsent on drums, Scott Greene on guitar, Ed Smith on bass, Jessica Bleenis on fiddle, and Harvey herself as “the loudmouth in the middle,” as she describes it.
The band was formed to have fun on the weekend and Harvey thinks that translates to the audience.
“It turns out that a lot of people like to have fun. Celtic music has a lot of jovial, fun-lovingness to it; even in mourning, in celebrating, there’s always an air of jovialness to it. People are attracted to that fun, laid-back atmosphere.”
For some of their fans, Harvey notes that it’s a taste of home. Many people from the east coast are living out west, just like the band itself, and they like having something from home on stage.
“We’re bringing the east coast to the west, and we’re bringing a little bit of the east coast back to the people who have been transplanted out here.”
Harvey promises a high energy show, with something for everyone, and moments of rest between the party songs. While she admits she’s in a theatre, she says that if people can find space to dance they should take the chance.
“I want to make you laugh, I want to make you cry, I want to make you laugh, then send you home. The whole while I want you to be entertained by Celtic classics and there might be new things you haven’t heard before.”
The Derina Harvey Band will be in Yorkton on Apr. 19 at the Anne Portnuff Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at yorktonarts.ca.
