Jonty Skrufff's Blog

Posts Tagged ‘ecstasy’

.

Los Angeles festival organisation Insomniac are suing local authorities for more than US$1million after the council cancelled an upcoming Tiesto gig over concerns about ecstasy use following the death of a 15 year old reveller at Insomniac’s last major event Electric Daisy (pictured).

The LA Times reported that Insomniac have calculated their damages claim based on estimated profits of US$436,250 on top of production costs of US$668,750, US$250,000 of which is a guaranteed fee for the Dutch performer.

“If this breach is allowed to stand, Insomniac will be known as a promoter that cannot follow through on its commitments,” Insomniac’s court filing noted. “As a result, artists of Tiësto’s caliber may henceforth by unwilling to contract with Insomniac.”

Via a press statement Insomniac founder Pasquale Rotella noted ‘I can’t help but draw comparisons to the ’80s movie classic ‘Footloose,’ where dancing and rock music were banned’ and also pointed that over a dozen people have died at sporting events at LA stadiums including the brutal killing of Brian Powers last year.

The 27 year old Los Angeles Angels baseball fan died at the opening day of last season after becoming involved in a fist fight inside the stadium. According to press reports he was punched from behind by a friend of the man he was fighting and fell, striking his head on the concrete and sustaining fatal injuries. Police issued numerous calls for witnesses while the baseball team’s chief PR issued a bizarre statement describing the circumstances.

“It was right after the game, and a lot of people staying after winning the first game is always exciting,” Angels PR Tim Mead told the Times following the killing, “We’re confident someone saw something; so is Anaheim PD. Hopefully someone will step forward to provide some of missing pieces to the puzzle.” (LA Times)

In an unrelated interview, Moby happened to speak up for Insomniac praising the profressionalism of the company in a Q & A with Bigshot Magazine.

“Well, although it was tainted by a girl dying, Electric Daisy Carnival was the most . . . it’s hard to speak positively about something where someone died, but production wise and energy wise it was probably the most remarkable event I’ve ever played at,” said Moby.

“The size of it was mindboggling: 185,000 people over two days in Los Angeles,” he added, “I’ve played big festivals before, but you don’t expect to play a rave for 90,000 kids a day in downtown L.A.”

Jonty Skrufff

Share on Facebook

.

20 revellers who apparently snorted or swallowed ‘bath salt’ Ivory Wave were hospitalised in Scotland last week after reportedly experiencing symptoms including ‘paranoia, hallucinations, psychosis, palpitations, insomnia and anxiety.’

The Scotsman newspaper said the substance is quickly becoming the new legal drug of choice for former mephedrone users despite pointed warnings on websites selling Ivory Wave which stress the white powder is ‘not for human consumption.’

“Add the contents to a hot bath to naturally soften the water which will leave you feeling very soothed and relaxed,” Am-Hi-Co.com recommend on their Ivory Wave sales page.

“Please, if you are a first time user of Ivory Wave we strongly recommend to start with a very tiny amount to your bath to see your body’s tolerance,” they add, “Once you get used to the strong effect of Ivory in your bath you can use more to reach the complete relaxation you want.”

Web portal Mysterious Plants also recommend adding the contents to a hot bath ‘to naturally soften the water’ urging ‘PLEASE do not use this as SNUFF!!!’

However, in a section marked MP Test results, they’re decidedly more ambiguous, declaring ‘very simply Ivory Wave will blow your mind away.’

“One thing though and it is very important folks: USE IT WITH CAUTION, not like “ohh, yeah, I know I know, I’m a f***ing Superhero, don’t worry” because you will be surprised big time,” Mysterious Minds advise.

“Some people love this, some not really, but it is strong for sure. Start with very tiny amount. Comes in about 45 mins and lasts for 3-4 hours. Giving us flashes during the whole time,” they say.

Jonty Skrufff

Share on Facebook

Spanish police have revealed that Ibiza drug dealers sell an estimated 40,000 ecstasy pills a night just as a new study of 3,000 Balearic tourists showed that one in five use ecstasy and the same proportion cocaine during their holidays.

A police spokesperson said most of the dealers are from Manchester or Liverpool though are difficult to catch.

Infamous Liverpool gangster Curtis Warren

“The British do not use locals to sell, only other British people, and they are selling it mostly to foreigners to avoid accidentally selling to an undercover officer,’ he told the Daily Mirror, “As a result it is very difficult to penetrate these groups,” he added.

Speaking to the Telegraph a ‘police source’ said ‘“This summer looks bad, worse even than previous years.

“It is proving very difficult to do an effective job,” the source added. “We have a team of only 15 drug enforcers across the whole island and only one vehicle.”

In related news, Britain’s Foreign Office revealed that 944 Brits were arrested for drugs offences worldwide last year representing one in seven of all arrest for Brits overseas (between April 2009 and March 2010).

The report revealed that Thailand has the highest arrest rate for Brits per thousand generally with Dubai close behind in second place.

“This report shines a light on the number of Britons who get into difficulty abroad each year,” said UK Minister Jeremy Browne, “The worrying fact is that so many of these situations are preventable.”

“It is illegal to have sex or cohabit outside marriage, including in hotels,” the report also warned (speaking specifically about Dubai) “Pregnancy outside marriage can lead to imprisonment. Adultery, cross-dressing and homosexual behaviour are illegal.”

Jonty Skrufff: Follow Jonty on Twitter

Share on Facebook

Promoters behind Los Angeles electronic music event Fresh Squeezed Music Festival 2010 succeeded in hosting their party last weekend, despite twice being forced to change venues at the last minute after council officials pulled their license.

Promotors from Fresh told KTLA News they’d received ‘incessant calls’ from officials pressuring them, which KTLA said were prompted by concerns sparked by the ecstasy related death of a teenage reveller at the Electric Daisy Carnival last month.

“There’s nothing more important, from the position of a municipality, than looking after the health and safety of our people, particularly our youth,” Pico Rivera Asst. City Manager Jeffrey Prang told the New channel, explaining the council’s reactions.

Much bigger electronic music event Hard LA also called off their planned event this weekend which was to have been headlined by MIA and said they’ll be combining the party with a future event scheduled for August.

Though numerous LA newspapers linked HARD’s last minute cancellation to the crackdown sparked by the Electric Daisy Carnival death, promoter Gary Richard category denied it, despite admitting that additional red tape “resulted in unforeseen costs to the event.”

“HARD LA M.I.A. Saturday July 17th has been cancelled, but not due to the lack of support or the full approval from the personnel at the City of Los Angeles and California State Parks who have signed off on our comprehensive security plan,” he insisted in a statement posted on HARD’s website.

“We have decided to instead produce one massive event on August 7th at the same amazing location, the Los Angeles State Historic Park in Downtown Los Angeles.

“We continue to work closely with LAFD, LAPD, City of Los Angeles, and California State Parks who continue to support all HARD events and have approved our plan to operate the HARD SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL at the Los Angeles State Historic Park on August 7th 2010 featuring Soulwax, Crystal Castles, Major Lazer, Erol Alkan, Diplo, Digitalism and more,” he added.

The LA Times, meanwhile published an in-depth report on MDMA this week which despite its title (‘A Closer Look: How Ecstasy harms’) was reasonably balanced in its assessment.

Noting that most pills sold as E no longer contain MDMA as well as the dangers of dehydration, the paper also pointed out that ‘people take the drug to feel mentally stimulated, physically energetic, emotionally positive and to experience a level of enhanced sensory perception’.

“Ecstasy seems to have a rather unique capacity for inducing states of empathy — powerful empathogenic experiences, where people feel very bonded,” acclaimed UCLA drug expert Dr. Charles Grob added, “People often have very positive experiences,” he said (LA Times)

Jonty Skrufff: Follow Jonty on Twitter

Share on Facebook