Day 30: Cleveland, OH
Nau mai
Yesterday we played a show in Cleveland, Ohio.
It was raining in Cleveland yesterday morning. I looked out the window after getting up and saw that we were beneath a great arch, a blue steel truss that I later discovered was belonging to the Main Avenue Bridge, a 2400m structure that carries Ohio’s State Route 2 above the industrial flats and across the Cuyahoga River.
I put together my breakfast from the leftovers of our catering at the Salt Shed. There was a kale salad that had roasted cherry tomatoes, pickled red onion, sultanas, and parmesan. There were also some roasted potatoes which were tossed in spices and lightly dressed in a vinegarette.
This was a neighbourhood that wore the armour of heavy industry, countless brick factories and a great network of steel bridges to connect everything. Railway, road, pedestrian, lifting, non-lifting – it had them all. It was hard to take a photo with fewer than four bridges in it. The call came out from Tristan as we were setting up our equipment on the stage – there was a lift bridge that looked like it was preparing to operate. A long freight train had just finished making its way across this structure when I arrived and there were bells warning of the impending event. Of the countless lift bridges that we have seen in our travels we have never seen one in motion. They always looked like relics, rusted and in disrepair. Not the Cuyahoga Lift Bridge #1, also known as the Iron Curtain Bridge. This 80 metre span was butter smooth in its operation, not even a squeak audible as the steel truss was raised to thirty metres above the river allowing the passage of the Callumet, a Great Lakes bulk freighter.
How many bridges can you see in this photo?
How many bridges can you see in this photo? Can you name them all?
I also caught the operation of the Willow Avenue Bridge, another steel truss vertical lift bridge which I was about to cross when the barriers came down. I was trapped on Whiskey Island for ten minutes while another beautifully maintained span made its way up into the heavens to allow the passage of a boat.
Our venue for the day was called Globe Iron, and as the name suggests this was housed in a building that used to specialise in all things Iron. Marine, stationary, portable, blowing and hoisting engines, narrow gauge locomotives, rolling mill machinery, boilers, tanks, stills, coarse sheet iron work, and general castings, were the products of the day. The character of this facility was still intact with brick arches, substantial wooden beams, and factory work lights to bring the space alive. This was a brand-new venue, and it seemed like a great place to experience music as an audience member with a good stage, plenty of standing room on the workshop floor, and several different elevated sections for the seated patrons.
Cleveland has always been good to us and last night’s show was no different. This 1200 capacity venue was sold out and the vibe was great, the dreary weather forgotten as generosity and warmth emanated from this wonderful audience.