The Burien Interim Art Space (B/ IAS) was turned into a city block of sound on Saturday, Aug. 15.
Eight speakers and 3,000 feet of speaker wire were utilized to create a truly unique musical experience.
Speakers were set all around the B/ IAS space, allowing people to walk through the music. Music played from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. On Saturday night, from 6:30 to 11 p.m., musicians performed live music.
B/ IAS co-founder Kathy Justin said over 200 people attended the live performance. They had a smaller but steady flow of people coming through during the day to take in the musical experience.
Jim Bartz was the first to go on stage, playing his 40-stringed instrument, called a stringathon.
Dane Johnson, co-founder of B/ IAS and the creator of Pieces of 8 said this was an idea he had for a while.
"This was like, either it's going to work, or it's not going to work, either artists are going to get the concept and be excited about it or it is going to be a fight from the beginning to the end and I think we answered that, they do get it they do want to be involved," Johnson said. "It was successful."
It is based off of the Flaming Lips composition that has come to be known as The Parking Lot Experiments.
Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne created 40 cassette tapes, which were to be played in together. The tapes were placed in cars throughout a parking lot and all people were told when to play their tape.
The band recorded the results. This inspired their eight channel experimental piece called Zaireeka. The Flaming Lips Zaireeka was played in its entirety during Pieces of 8.
"Some of the pieces are really simple, but they are beautiful in their simplicity," Johnson said.
Originally he wanted to do it in a larger space, but decided to try it at the B/ IAS location because he has a good relationship with the city and could control the location.
People donating equipment and their time made the event possible. Johnson said as much of the equipment as possible was either donated or rented.
For security, Johnson and Justin stayed the night in a camper on the grounds.
Johnson said he would like to make this into an annual event, if possible. He said if he does it again though it will not be in Burien.
"This is really experimental, it is not about repeating yourself it is about trying the same concept in different environments and trying different things," Johnson said.
The next big event at the B/ IAS will be Burien's Arts-A-Glow on Sept. 12. The Lantern Festival and Procession will begin at 5 p.m. and go until 10 p.m.