Review: The Train Kept A-Rollin' All Night Long At Station To Station
By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Sep 12, 2013 7:15PM
If you hadn’t heard the rumblings, Tuesday night Union Station was more than commuter central when Station to Station rolled into town. The event featured everything from art films to music to slow food, and a sold out crowd poured into the Great Hall to explore. Details for the event were sparse and intentionally vague as visitors were encouraged to blaze their own paths and experience everything at their own pace at first. Seven yurts stood inside the hall, including Levi’s Maker’s tent, where weavers were hard at work, and Urs Fischer’s nomadic sculpture, which was a dreamlike, smoke filled house of mirrors with a plush white bed dead center under a disco ball.
Local farmers like Johnson Creek Farms from just over the border in WI sold their “liquid gold” honey, and there was fresh baked bread and sandwiches by Publican. Our first impression was that there wasn’t quite enough guidance, and the event didn’t seem to have any form at all, but as it was a “happening” that was part of the experience. Shortly after thinking this, we were surprised to hear a marching band from the Jackson Street balcony. The Rich South High School Marching Band descended from their heights straight into the crowd, and put on an exciting show that primed the crowd wonderfully.
This directly led into White Mystery’s set. The sibling duo was the perfect opener with great energy and electric sound. In between musical guests art films by the likes of Allora and Calzadilla, Peter Fischli and David Weiss entertained the crowd. We thought the event took wonderful advantage of the Great Hall. A stage in the middle of the room provided surprises, and many times voices echoed from all available vantage points in the room. At one point what started as a sound check became a cacophonous performance of its own including an auctioneer.
Thurston Moore was next up and provided a mellower, ‘70s rock sound. When a fuse unexpectedly blew, he pulled a handwritten piece of paper out of his back pocket and played an impromptu acoustic set. After the power issue was fixed, The Black Monks of Mississippi came in, with a reggae / gospel feel that was immediately welcoming. They opened strong, and their second song brought the room to a hushed awe, as the crystal-clear tenor voice of one of the ever-changing members of the group rang out through the hall. The rest of their set was wonderful, but for us, nothing quite topped that moment, and it was a high point of the event.
A very theatrical spoken word artist named Plus Sign performed behind the main stage while we all awaited the arrival of the just-announced headliner, Mavis Staples. From the moment Staples stepped on stage she shined. She came to this performance with an infectious joy, and throughout the set we had the feeling that we were in a much smaller room. Her tribute to Levon Helm, a cover of “The Weight”, was absolutely wonderful, and we hung on every word, spoken or sung. We thought the set was absolute magic, and a fitting way to close out the night. Just as we were packing our things, Black Monk appeared with No Age in the balcony and sent us off with an esoteric song that faded into the background.
Overall, we thought that Station to Station was a great success, and a wonderful chance to highlight some amazing locals and get exposed to some new and interesting art.