WOODSTOCK '99 // 56-57 TOTALLY ENORMOUS EXTINCT

WORDS BY JAI MCINTOSH

For those suffering from the Millennium bug, Woodstock ‘99 would not have been a healing process. Riots, heatwaves, destroyed facilities, and Nu-Metal all played their role in the death of the nineties.

THE DAY THE NINETIES DIED

THE DAY THE NINETIES DIED

When you think of Woodstock, you think of free living, free loving people peppered around a field with the dull aroma of marijuana floating over the masses of dilated pupils. Harmless enough. This was 1969, the year Jimi Hendrix adorned the Woodstock stage with an effortless style and a slight acid wobble that has captivated the minds of millions since. Fast-forward to 1999, and things are very different in America.

Bill Clinton was sitting atop of the executive as the shiniest lame duck, the dotcom bubble burst, and NASDAQ declined 76%. The fears of capitalist America are being realised. In the wake of this is the rise of Nu-Metal, with bands such as Korn, Slipknot, and Limp Bizkit ushering in Metal’s first day in the sun. Sunscreen was definitely required.

As Woodstock ‘99 rolled around, much in line with that year’s expectations, Nu-Metal was to have its time. Alongside the mellow tones one would expect from a Woodstock Festival, Limp Bizkit, Korn, and Rage Against The Machine were the standout Nu-Metal bands getting the opportunity to be flag bearers for the underground.

However, Woodstock ‘99 failed to materialise into the opportunity for Nu-Metal that some had hoped it would be. Instead, Woodstock ‘99 became the catalyst for the increased vilification of Nu-Metal, with the devastation that ensued often being blamed on Limp Bizkit, Korn, and Red Hot Chilli Peppers. In retrospect, the destruction and rioting at Woodstock ‘99 was ultimately down to poor planning, lack of resources and organisation combined with an underbelly of male American aggression that resulted in sexual assault cases, three deaths, and millions of dollars worth of damage.

Built on a former U.S Army base in Rome, New York, Woodstock ‘99 started with the groans of people unwilling to pay $4 for a small bottle of water. Given that temperatures exceeded 38°C and people were sleeping under parked vehicles for shade, these groans seem even more understandable. Then the realisation set in that public facilities were clearly unable to handle the size of each crowd meaning that the majority of festival-goers had to trudge through a mix of whatever was dripping out. Combine all these aspects with general social discontent and the heavy bass of metal music and you quickly unveil the allure of en masse destruction that was simply too strong to avoid.

As Saturday evening wound to a close, the palpable aggression in the air was thick enough that you could smell it over the leaky latrines. Social unrest, the recent Columbine shooting, and the looming chants for profit from the festival organisers - it’s no wonder that the festival became dubbed Profitstock - culminated in unprecedented festival rioting that has never been replicated at a mainstream festival event since.

As the Red Hot Chilli Peppers took to the stage for their final song, the audience were issued candles to light as a vigil for those who had lost their lives in the Columbine massacre. The band opted to play Fire by Jimi Hendrix as both an ode to lives lost and to the essence of the festival. However, if you have over 200,000 dehydrated, angry, and slightly delirious people in a confined space, giving them candles is ultimately going to end in devastation.

“Holy shit it's the apocalypse now out there!” is the shout from Anthony Kedis as their set was interrupted by festival organisers attempting to dispel audience members from setting more fires. What ensued was cars and vans being tipped over and set alight, riots and violence against security and police, multiple sexual assaults, theft and general destructive behaviour. The mythology of Woodstock disappeared with the rising smoke.