One more post about Freak Fest. One of the great things about the fest is that much of the audience was made up of musicians. People sitting watching the acts on stage, later, got onstage and performed too. And musicians were playing for musicians, and well there was no competition, instead there was a wonderful attentiveness, an awareness, a sensitivity, a solidarity about the creative thing.
Instead of an invisible barrier between performer and audience - pampered rock star vs. r&r fan - there were no barriers. "The Freaks" ruled. Everyone could play and sing and dance, and well, isn't that the DIY ideal totally embodied? It was a beautiful thing. And there was no bullshit. Everything and everyone was music. I mean, there were a few people who were there to be the audience. They wanted to enjoy the performances, they wanted to watch and listen and that was that...but even those folks seemed open and creative and fucking interesting.
So in that way, this little experiment in the corn really was kind of freaky. What if you could go to a place where everyone was cool and creative, and loved music and it wasn't about the hustle or the money, or some "star" trip? Wouldn't that just be the freakyist, coolest place on earth to be?