TODAY'S RAVES 'DRIVEN BY HARD-DRUG USE': FORMER ORGANIZER

In the early and mid-1990s, music-thumping, densely packed all-night
raves -- dance parties -- in Vancouver were largely underground,
unlicensed and unpoliced.

But by 1998, says a veteran RCMP drug officer, raves were becoming
mainstream, they had security and they were largely alcohol-free,
although illegal drugs -- ecstasy, GHB and methamphetamine -- were
common.

As raves rose in popularity in the late '90s and early 2000s, first
Vancouver and then Richmond licensed the events in an effort to bring
them above ground, RCMP Sgt. Scott Rintoul said.

There was little violence, he said, because rave drugs didn't induce
that type of behaviour.

But over the last 12 years, Rintoul noted, "the rave scene has really
died off. ... It's no longer what it used to be."

There are some exceptions, such as the large, popular Shambala Rave in
Salmo. In Vancouver, there are still large raves a few times a year at
the Pacific Coliseum.

He said the same types of drugs are still found at today's raves, but
there are also copycat drugs and new drugs such as ketamine, and
alcohol is much more prevalent, creating conditions for potentially
toxic mixing of substances. There have been several fatal overdoses at
local raves in recent years.

Rintoul said it was unclear whether last weekend's notorious party in
Pitt Meadows, which was billed as a rave, truly was a rave. Police say
a 16-year-old girl was gang-raped at the event.

It certainly wasn't licensed and regulated the way raves were earlier
this decade, and that's a trend. Rintoul said larger raves are
increasingly being replaced by smaller "bush parties" with few rules.

"It's no holds barred. There is no security today. There is no police
presence. It is participant beware," he said.

Rintoul stressed that teens should avoid using drugs and alcohol, and
watch their drinks to make sure they are not spiked.

"My concern today is the increased risky behaviour" people engage in
when using drugs. "They are using more than just the one, and that is
problematic because people do dumber things."

Vincent Parker, a 26-year-old who began organizing raves eight years
ago, agreed the rave scene has changed a lot over the past decade.

In the late 1990s, Parker said, while the drug ecstasy was widespread
at raves, the parties had a community vibe with little violence.

"It used to be something for dancing," he said. "But it was co-opted a
long time ago by a bunch of people who are more interested in the
druggie element. ... It's been driven by hard-drug use for a while."

Parker said raves are increasing organized by "sketchy" people "who
aren't necessarily doing it for the right reasons."

As well, he said, the rave scene has moved out of the cities to
smaller towns and rural areas where there's less police oversight.

Parker said he and his friends have long left raves behind and are
interested now in promoting concerts for bands.

Nathan Messer is president of the board of directors of Dance-Safe, a
non-profit U.S.-based organization with volunteers who have been
running harm-reduction booths at raves with information about drug
safety, safe sex and other health issues since 1998.

Until a few years ago, Dance-Safe worked hand-in-hand with a similar
Vancouver group.

Messer said that in the U.S., and he believes also in Canadian cities
such as Vancouver and Montreal, raves are still popular, but are now
held in clubs or art venues.

"If you think of a definition of a rave as un-permitted in an old
warehouse, that hasn't happened for a long time," he said. "There is a
lot less underground parties."

Messer said the venues for above-ground raves might be safer today,
but there is increased danger from the new, untested drugs that are
replacing ecstasy.

"We don't know a whole lot about the substances that are being sold as
ecstasy right now," he said.