You got to hand it to the people behind Summer Break Music Festival 8 - they sure know how to promote an event. A website, a contracted ticket seller, top names in electronic music, four stages, natural surroundings. It all sounds like a dream rave.
It's too bad organizers showed such contempt for their host community.
And the biggest shame of all is this festival gives similar legitimate events a bad reputation at a time when rifts are just starting to be healed.
The counter-culture rave trend launched in the 1980s attempted to create gatherings for people marginalized for their lifestyle choices. They took it upon themselves to put on shows that flew under law-enforcement radars by transporting audiences from a pre-determined location to a mystery staging area miles away.
Now it seems the rave philosophy has been co-opted by people with dollar signs in their eyes seeing a financial benefit in rejecting rules and regulations. The latest unauthorized festival organizers hoped for 3,000 attendees, each holding $100 tickets. Do the math.
Rogue and illegal "parties" of this sort regularly occur in the Squamish Valley, causing frustration among locals living with the traffic, garbage and potential crime associated with any large gathering.
There's been some headway made in healing that rift, most recently through the Bass Coast Project, which took place at the Squamish Valley Campground earlier this summer. By all accounts, that show hit all the right notes.
The artistic community involved was a diverse group of locals and out-of-towners. Organizers - some from Squamish - took months to painstakingly address concerns at a neighbourhood and regional levels. The goodwill seemingly oozed from their every pore.
But the perception by Lower Mainland folks that the valley is "the middle of nowhere" (a direct quote from a Summer Break promoter) continues to bring yahoos to their doorsteps.
Promoter David G was good at explaining why the eighth annual event chose the Squamish Valley (as was originally believed) for the massive show.
"The only reason that we've changed locations is for a better experience for the customers themselves. Every year it just keep getting bigger and bigger and we have to accommodate the larger audience. And I think we've finally hit a space where everybody is guaranteed a good time and guaranteed that there will be no problems whatsoever."
Could he have been more wrong?
In evoking the priority on "customers," he hints at where things fall apart.
But at least some of his jargon acknowledged Squamish as part of civilization:
"I'd like to say thank you to the city of Squamish for having us, and I think that this reoccurring every year will be a great benefit for everyone."
We won't hold our breath.
