Throughout the days leading up to the trip to Marfa, Texas, I’ve been excited to see everything Marfa Myths possibly has to offer: open beautiful deserts and spacious environment, and a lot of wonderful acts that simply fit into the festival so well. Each year they also get artists to collaborate on a short album, and this time around, Dungen is working with Wood’s for the Myths 003 album.
Coming from Dallas, a quite urban and developed area in Texas, a trip down to the west will be like going to a whole other country, especially since it’s a 8-hour road trip from campus. I’ve heard about Marfa Myths through the DJ’s whom went last year, which you can read more about their experience on their Spring 2017 Recap of the fest, as well as the zine they composed during that season.
Just hearing about the powerful performances from Pharaoh Sanders and his incredible solos on his staple saxophone with his band, or Connan Mockasin singing with guitar smoothly like Prince, all captivated me because all of this was essentially happening in some empty space in Texas, which seems quite blissful to someone like me. The beautiful landscapes will absolutely be explored during our stay, and they will surely find me and my good co-worker taking some sweet pictures to bring back home and write up about.
I have been anticipating seeing Tom Zé’s appearance at Marfa, hoping that I see him and his band perhaps get a little experimental on stage and amaze me with their complexly beautiful compositions. My friend also showed me a good amount of Terry Allen which got me hyped for his show specifically (surely reflects the Texas in me). There’s also many notable mentions to talk about on my end such as Innov Gnawa getting down on their spiritually healing music which is originally from the vast city of Brooklyn, NY. There’s also new acts I’m excited for such as Equiknoxx and Visible Cloaks, coupled with the classic electronic composer Suzanne Ciani. I’m honestly not sure what to expect. Whether I’m over-hyping or under-hyping this festival is beyond me, although I know for sure that I’m excited as the fires in hell.
For the full lineup and more information, check out the Marfa Myths website.