Drugs, Terror and Noise: The New Regime of Rave Surveillance (in Goa)

Unusual things happened in the trance scene in Goa (India) this season. I start with an apparently trivial story. The police arrested a group of party promoters led by a German and a Russian DJ in the remote beach of Morjim this last January 11. Nothing special here, had they been caught selling drugs (which was not the case). Since the early 2000s, the government has largely eradicated the trance scene, but smaller secret parties still take place, under informal agreements among villagers, cops and expatriates. In any case, whenever the police raid these unauthorized events, the same outcome is expected: Western party promoters get away with a warning, perhaps losing the sound system, if not paying baksheesh (institutional bribe).

However, the recent arrest was different. To the best of my knowledge, this was the first time that Western party promoters have been arrested on charges of public disorder, as defined in the "Noise Pollution Rules" - a not-so-new law (year 2000) that bans unauthorized audio events from public spaces between 22:00 to 6:00. Ironical, as Goa police has only recently opened its very first anti-narcotics division...

As an additional twist, Goa authorities have been monitoring the trance scene within wider concerns about terrorism. Goa is a top tourist destination, in addition to boasting a significant Christian heritage. Considering the terrorist attacks in Bali, Egypt and Mumbai, it is somehow surprising that Goa has not been hit. Tight community oversight of their rural surroundings seems to be working as a strong deterrent. Nevertheless, authorities worry that free flows of party goers may serve as target (or conduit) for terrorist plots. Otherwise, how Techno freaks and Islamic terrorists are linked is still a matter for Bollywood imagination...

In sum, a new regime of global rave surveillance seems to be on the rise. From demonizing trance parties as drug havens, the State is now employing themes of "drugs", "terror" and "noise" within a single regime of surveillance/environment/development for regulating the local trance scene and tourism. This is not the result of any intentional orchestration, but rather, the expression of the messiness of global forces acting upon rave scenes and tourist resorts around the world.

Yet, where there is power, there is resistance...

Silent Raves: iPod vs Walkman Revolution

Imagine hundreds of people dancing in a public park but in silence; or more precisely by each one’s own iPod chosen track. In fact, this has been happening in cities like London, New York and Boston. Very simply, teens schedule a "silent rave" in social websites (Facebook, My Space), and the crowd then shows up at the designated place and time. Then, by the organizer's shout, everyone turns on their iPods simultaneously, dancing to the song of their choice. In relative silence (other than eventual shrieks from mouths and rubber-soled shoes), hundreds of bodies widely gesture at different rates, styles and rhythms. A silent rave lasts no longer than one hour. (Watch video at the end).

It is not simple to "sociologize" about this type of "dancing together but individually." Actually, the element of silence is not totally new in rave culture. In the early 1990s, silent raves were reported in northern California, but with a very significant difference. The dancing crowd had Walkmans which were set on the same radio frequency, with music being broadcast by a DJ with a pirate radio transmitter by the dancefloor. They danced in silence, but in synchrony - a very important difference in terms of ritual connection and experience.

Left-leaning NPR was ready to criticize the new iPod dance phenomenon as an example of autistic alienation, of a hyper-individualism that fragments society, and which teenagers sadly exemplify. Not too differently, from a radical countercultural viewpoint, these silent dance gatherings could be dismissed as pacified pseudo-raves, events that do not transgress the logic of state control of urban spaces and moving bodies. In fact, a passerby thought that the silent rave in London was a "city-sponsored program to combat stress"!

However, iPod raves could be rather seen as an emerging and sophisticated way to reclaim public spaces by indirectly circumventing laws on noise and public space. These are teen crowds celebrating togetherness through body expression, yet within the strange realm of "non-illegality". According to videos and anecdotal reports, these are daylight, apparently drug-free crowds. Nevertheless, if such events were to become popular, perhaps it would not take long for state authorities to take some repressive action. Does the state have the right to intervene in the private space of one's own subjective interiority?...

More deeply, I'd argue that the lack of a single rhythm unifying the crowd would prevent the liberating experience of self-transcendence which is very typical in religious gatherings - whether shamanic, evangelical or clubbing. As a collective catalyst, music binds all individuals together. It engenders an organic entity, triggering states of collective effervescence that overtake the individual, and may last for many hours. Perhaps, the fact that iPod raves last no more than one hour is indicative of such a lack.

Therefore, I am inclined to believe that the ancient Walkman syncronic silent rave (California 1990s) provides a much more socially connective experience than the emerging iPod variant (London 2000s). What is the point of choosing your own music to dance, if you can't share it with the person next to you, at any deeper level?... As such, it is ironical to observe that the iPod is an involution from the Walkman!

Well, we don't need to be deep all the time. All and all, iPod silent raves should be welcomed as a soft form of daylight socialization, why not?... At least, they will probably pave the way for real, all night long syncronized silent raves, yeah...

Video: London, Victoria Station, April 2007. Author: twittervlog

Joe Biden and the Decline of Rave Parties in America

A few days after Senator Joe Biden was chosen as a vice-presidential candidate, my net crawlers unexpectedly dug some old debates about his role in the anti-rave legislation in the U.S.

As I crosschecked U.S. Congressional records, Joseph Biden indeed authored the RAVE act, a piece of legislation approved in 2003 that has allegedly contributed to the demise of rave parties in the U.S. (or, at least, the first generation of "underground" events).

As a legal acronym, RAVE stands for "Reducing Americans' Vulnerability to Ecstasy". It cracks down on rave promoters if drugs are found in their events, even if they have provided effective security, and even if they have no relation with individuals who consumed or traded drugs in their events. Moreover, based on former "crack house statutes", the law also criminalizes the venue owner (club, bar, warehouse etc.) just for renting their space. Again, landlords don't have to be related to - or not even aware of - those dealing or consuming drugs in their venue, in order to be heavily prosecuted.

Civil liberty groups have found some problems in the content and manner of the bill when it was introduced to Congress. Strangely, it entered legislative discussion as an amendment to a child abduction bill, a quite unrelated issue. As troubling, the bill was evaluated without any public hearing or vote in Congress.

After ten months, 30,000 protest faxes and the withdrawal of two senators' support, the RAVE act was finally passed, but after some revision. The original bill proposed that the sales of water, glowsticks and even telletubbie bags were to serve as criminal evidence. This disposition was soundly removed, as well as the word "rave". Though formally focusing on ecstasy, the act targets promoters and landlords for any type of drug or musical event (hip-hop, rock, etc).

Despite its repressive effects, I don't think that the RAVE act was the main cause for the decline of rave in America, as claimed by some insiders. Although being a tool for controlling any emergent rave scene locally, the law has been very inconsistently applied, according to state, city, authority, and scene status.

The terrorist attacks of September 11 (2001) likely had a much worse impact on the rave scene across the country. Before 9/11, the growth of rave culture in America was fueled by a blatantly pop Romantic ideology. Permeated with sheer optimism and the overtly celebration of innocence, mainstream-to-be "candy ravers" were seen hugging strangers, sucking on pacifiers, and declaring P.L.U.R. at each email (Peace, Love, Understanding, and Respect). But, with 9/11, the nation was immediately regimented for war - a decisive blow on the spirit of rave. Party kids were frightened and demoralized, to say the least.

The RAVE act is a missed opportunity. It could and should have been much better formulated. I support civil rights liberties, but also find it disturbing when masses of teenagers are buzzing high on drugs. Not only drugs become part of their lives, but are often abused at every weekend, just worsening psychological and social problems typical of this age. Yes, this is also true of alcohol, which surprisingly is quite tolerated by U.S. Law. Just attend any bar district of any big city, and you'll see ethylic overdoses at a staggering level.

There is no easy solution for the problem. The typical move has been to criminalize subcultures, with contradictory results, and the RAVE act is a recent example. Yet, from a variety of international cases, a more intelligent approach on drugs - one that recognizes the differences among drugs, uses, user profiles, and official intervention -, tends to produce much superior results.

Who is then to be monitored and educated? Kids, parents, MTV, or government itself?...