The festival cancellation
The dance festival was canceled two years later due to complaints from local residents.
Organizers and local response
The organizers of the Goa cream festival planned to hold a festival on the farm of Yetri near Tornberi, north of Bristol, for the third consecutive year and the ninth year in total.
However, advisers from Southern Gloucestershire abandoned plans for the psychedelic trance festival scheduled from September 12 to 14 after discussions with the Environment and Police team of Avon and Somerset.
A local resident who contacted the police last year expressed in a letter that the “continuous heavy bass music” was “almost inhuman and a form of torture,” as reported by BBC News.
Meanwhile, environmental officer Florence Fisher informed the Council that last year’s festival attracted 11 complaints from nearby residents, stating that the environmental protection data provided amounted to little more than “numbers written on pieces of paper” and inadequate screenshots of equipment readings.
Community impact and organizer’s response
One resident reported that the festival caused headaches for them throughout the weekends, while others mentioned that the music vibrated their windows at home. An officer from the UES Hassi police licensing division shared a complaint from another resident, who stated that the noise had a “deep effect” on him and his family, warning that the proposed timings for music and alcohol sale could potentially lead to confrontations.
During the meeting, organizer Pierce Siappa noted that the festival conducted its own noise monitoring last year, but has now secured a contract with a professional acoustic engineer. He stated, “Last year we had only handwritten notes and photos because a week after the event, my colleague had a serious accident. He almost lost his hand while cutting grass, so he couldn’t gather the data—this year, however, we have a professional team with us.”
Siappa mentioned that the festival typically attracts attendees averaging around 40 years old, many of whom bring their children, and raised funds for suicide prevention in Bristol and a rescue boat station.
To address the noise issues, he proposed reorienting the speakers to face away from homes and reducing the timeframe for alcohol sales.
https://www.nme.com/news/music/bristol-dance-festival-cancelled-due-to-residents-calling-it-a-form-of-torture-3855239?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=bristol-dance-festival-cancelled-due-to-residents-calling-it-a-form-of-torture
