Camp Bisco not returning to Mariaville
Residents of Upstate New York may be disappointed to find out that Camp Bisco will not be returning to its usual location.
Camp Bisco is an annual music festival that has been taking place since 1999. It was originally created by the electronic jam band The Disco Biscuits.
Since 2007, Indian Lookout Country Club in Mariaville, New York (located just outside of Schenectady) has been home to the music festival. Many famous acts have played at the music festival.
From Snoop Dogg to Nas, and Damian Marley to Skrillex, the festival has been seen several famous hip hop and electronic dance music acts.
On Feb. 7, WNYT Channel 13 reported that the “popular yet controversial” music festival would not be returning to Mariaville. The owner of Indian Lookout told the news station that the festival’s organizers have not reserved dates for the upcoming year and may be planning to move the three day show to Saugerties, New York.
This could be due in part to the festivals infamous reputation for drugs. According to Channel 13, local residents reported that the festival “wreaks havoc” on their community.
Aside from drugs, residents state that concertgoers have a tendency to pollute the area with trash.
Every year there are numerous drug overdoses, drug busts by the police and hospitalization of attendees. One person has died during the last seven years and another local concertgoer, Heather Bynum, was paralyzed.
That lead Times Union reporters Scott Waldman and Alysia Santo to ask, “just how safe is Camp Bisco?”
In their article from July 2013, they recount the story of Heather Bynum. Her frantic fiance found her on the floor, foaming at the mouth and having a seizure. He told the Times Union that he and Bynum drank and took MDMA, also known as “Molly,” prior to her collapse.
Despite the risk, thousands have flocked to the festival year after year and that isn’t expected to decrease even with the expected move.
In 2011 after a man was found dead at the festival with Xanax, hydrocodone and marijuana found in his tent, local resident and concertgoer Gabrielle Scott of Scotia told Julie Tremmel of Fox News 23, “People do go nuts, people do go overboard, but it’s like, you’re responsible for yourself kind of thing. So it’s like, you’re smart enough, you should really know better.”