NOTE: The opinions in this article are of Jay Laiche and do not reflect the opinions of WRR as a whole in any way, shape, or form.
While I was at Camp Bisco this summer, something incredibly profound happened to me while watching Wolfgang Gartner. Gartner, whom I had seen and danced tremendously to just over a year before at Starscape, wasn’t the same. As I stood there, I became locked to the crowd, not Gartner. I saw an ocean of neon, totems like buoys sticking up as far as the eye could see. Everywhere I looked, attendees would occasionally look down and stick a quick pinky in their bag of substance. Dance-offs would be taking place between two participants who were clearly ‘rolling’. With each drop, an extreme outburst of energy would take place, only to fade back to a sorry medium within 30 seconds. As I gazed upon this, I had the deep, identity-shaping revelation that I was over ‘EDM’. I looked down at my wrist, took the kandi bracelets I was wearing off, and let them drop silently to the muddy ground below. In this extreme moment of clarity, I saw the beast that ‘EDM’ had turned into, and I wanted no part of it.
EDM, or ‘electronic dance music’–the fist-pumping, sometimes twerk-inducing and high-energy sub-catergory of electronic music that has become a highly-commercialized segment of American live music culture–has imploded on itself. To say otherwise is a denial of reality. We knew the so-called ‘bubble’ was going to burst, and those who realized this found quick exit from the scene. Others, however, can not detach themselves so easily. The two deaths at Electric Zoo this past weekend and the firestorm that followed has dealt EDM a stab in the heart. We are watching a historic movement “bleed out” and begin to make its retraction into the undergrounds of alternative music. And as we watch it, we should look on with a sad heart, for we have failed EDM, and failed ourselves.
Take a step back and look at what has happened. I have always thought that this ‘EDM movement’–which I will refer to it as throughout the course of this piece– was comparable to the hippie-movement of the ’60s. A youth unified, the “Woodstock” era spread the tenets of peace, love, and happiness. Three simple adjectives, yet are the pinnacles of every young person’s mind. Our current era of music was much the same; at shows, everything you cared about, every little worry on your mind, and every tendril of stress that surrounded you was instantly vanished. It was an incredible thing, and while of course this goes for all types of music, EDM became a haven for a multitude of young-people, making it extremely valuable. Misfits had a place where they belonged, and for many who have delved into the scene, it has provided friendship, community, and support.
However, we’ve dropped the ball. What began as an exciting new era of foreign, yet heart-thrilling music soon became a full-blown monster. Everywhere you looked, there was a new EDM festival, a new all-night EDM event; heck, there are even rave-inspired 5k runs now. If the market’s complete exploitation of what was supposed to be ours isn’t enough, we then not only condoned, but unknowingly supported drug-use. Plain and simple, EDM has an outrageous drug problem, and every single one of us is to blame. By taking it, talking about it, and most unfortunately, acting as if its just a normal part of the scene, we are now marred with the loss of countless lives, on top of families who will never be the same. When I heard Electric Zoo was cancelled due to two deaths, it sent chills down my spine. But I respect the absolute hell out of them for doing it.
As one of my good friends Amber said (which struck me very dearly),
“How dare we continue the party in their absence like their lives meant nothing?”
An Aside: Altamont Free Concert
Before we travel any forward, let us rewind to December 6, 1969. It was northern California, at a place that will forever live in infamy: Altamont Speedway. Altamont Free Concert, as it was dubbed, was supposed to be “Woodstock West”. Featuring an absolutely stellar lineup, including The Grateful Dead, The Rolling Stones, Santana, Jefferson Airplane, and more, there was no reason why Altamont wouldn’t be a similar event to Woodstock, which was just four months prior. Yet, things went completely opposite as planned, and Altamont is now known colloquially as the end of the “hippie-era”.
“Altamont was the product of diabolical egotism, hype, ineptitude, money manipulation, and, at base, a fundamental lack of concern for humanity.” – Rolling Stone Magazine
Due to inadequate and uncaring security, excessive drug use, selfishness and as Rolling Stone stated, a lack of concern for humanity, Altamont became a dark, violent frenzy. Fights began breaking out throughout the crowd, many attendees were overly-intoxicated and out-of-control, and the entire place became such a ruckus that when the Grateful Dead arrived, they refused to play. The event is usually highlighted by the murder of Meredith Hunter; an arbitrary death, Hunter was murdered by a Hells Angel security-member when Hunter pulled a gun during the show. The events at this show soon led to the ’60s music scene and counterculture eventually fading back to whence it came.
While Electric Zoo was surely no Altamont, the repercussions of each event hold similar value in my mind. Its name itself, “Zoo” refers to its attendees as “animals”. Blatant and excessive drug-use, narcissism, and a disrespect for what the festival was supposed to be about–the music–led to not only the cancellation of an event, but a massive blow to the EDM community. Now major networks are picking up the stories, informing the public of the horrors of electronic music festivals. And while you may think its unfair, misconstrued, or just wrong, it’s the truth. The elephant in the room has now been let out of its cage, and unfortunately I believe it’ll bring the whole house down with it.
When the EDM movement is long-gone, we will look back and say Electric Zoo 2013 was a key spark in its demise.
Where Does EDM Go From Here?
I wish I could say we can rally together and get through this. I wish I could say that now is the time for real unity. But to be quite frank, I simply cannot see it happening. Maybe if this was the ’60s and there was no Facebook, Twitter, iPhones, and other constant influxes of distraction, we could pull through and come out on top. But in this day and age, it won’t happen.
When Electric Zoo was cancelled, most responses from attendees were along the lines of, “why should the decisions of a few affect all of us?” To their credit, it is a fair and instinctive response. These people came from all over the United States to come to Electric Zoo to have their fun-filled weekend cut short. But therein lies the problem. This impulsive selfishness that has permeated our youth culture is more apparent than one would like to think. Instead of mourning their fellow “animal”, many would have rather it been swept under the rug in the favor of continuing the party. And that is simply unacceptable. Because of notions like this, EDM unity is impossible. To say we are all family is wishful thinking, but in reality, we all know deep down it’s not true. We are too big, yet too isolated for this to be true.
EDM, in the musical sense, is a nice sentiment. EDM is all about living in the moment, “celebrating life” as Tiesto said. While this idea has certainly latched onto our culture– immortalized with sayings like “YOLO”– the reason it will die is because straight up, it’s not relatable. We all wish we could say that every present moment we are living life to the fullest, but the truth is, we aren’t. Life is about struggle, about overcoming odds, riding the waves. New York Times writer Jon Pareles worded it very well in an article concerning Electric Zoo:
“Electronic dance music is purposefully, single-mindedly life affirming, all about being alive in the moment, awash in sensation. Hip-hop, rock, R&B and, of course, the blues are well aware of struggle, sadness, mortality, memory and anticipation, as they tell stories and fill their song forms; electronic dance music takes place in an eternal present.”
EDM, like top 40 radio, has become commercialized to the point where the market wants you to believe that everything is perfect, subconsciously preaching the idea that “ignorance is bliss”. While life surely has moments of “perfectness”, we must all accept the struggles of life. If you do not, you’ll be living a sad facade.
A Lingering Hope
Hunter S. Thompson, the famous journalist and author, once said:
“Music has always been a matter of Energy to me, a question of Fuel. Sentimental people call it Inspiration, but what they really mean is Fuel. I have always needed Fuel. I am a serious consumer. On some nights I still believe that a car with the gas needle on empty can run about fifty more miles if you have the right music very loud on the radio.”
Music has an incredible ability to move people. While I have sat here and languished on the “death” of EDM, please understand that this will be a slow death, due to the massive support that still exists for the scene. I suspect the ‘movement’ will still last at least a couple years, though I believe the peak has already been reached. EDM heavyweights–Armin Van Buuren, Bassnectar, Tiesto, and the like–will live on, and surely will still pull massive crowds. But unfortunately, the “welterweights” if you will, may soon find mass interest dwindling. It is inevitable? Yes. Can we at least slow it down? Maybe.
When I left Camp Bisco this summer, I made some serious lifestyle changes. While I won’t go into details, I will share that I made definitive changes about substance-use. While it’s silly to say drugs could someday be completely eradicated from the scene, I believe most outlets are taking the wrong approach. Education is vital, but at this stage of the game, it’s too little, too late. Action needs to take place. Give yourself a good, hard look in the mirror, and ask yourself if you’re really proud of who you are. Do something radical, and be change. Purify your body and your soul of the need for foreign substances, find yourself, and get back to the reason you began listening to EDM in the first place: the music.
Only when we ditch the frou-frou outfits, stop condoning the drug-use, and latch our souls to the music, does EDM have a fighting chance of surviving this on the winning end. As I said, and you should know, EDM will eventually fade. Ten years from now, do you want to look back and say, “Remember when we wore neon, took a bunch of illegal drugs, flailed like zombies and looked like idiots?” or do you want to say “Remember the power and beauty EDM became?”
It saddens me to have written this article, condemning a scene that brought me in, no questions asked, and molded me into the human being I’m proud to be today. However, these words need to be said. We need to quit talking and start acting. I would rather see EDM go out in a beautiful, fiery blaze than see it become a stain in the history of pop culture.
While not EDM, I added this sobering song below for you to listen to. Turn off the lights, hit play, close your eyes, and think about the beautiful years we had. Here’s to hoping we can turn EDM into the proverbial phoenix, to watch it crash but rise once again, better than ever.
Where are we? What the hell is going on?
The dust has only just begun to fall,
Crop circles in the carpet, sinking, feeling.
Spin me ’round again and rub my eyes.
This can’t be happening.
When busy streets amass with people
Would stop to hold their heads heavy.
Read the rebuttal to this article, “In Response to Electric Zoo, Altamont: We Will Not Fail”
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