Lakota has spoken out after it was forced to stop a free Fatboy Slim and Eats Everything rave when people in the crowd became "physically aggressive". The event on Wednesday night (October 12) was cut short when some people started throwing bottles, climbing walls and "spitting" at the nightclub's staff.
The nightclub said it could only accommodate 400 people, including its own staff, in the space and pulled the pull on the show when it became dangerous. It said it was "beyond disappointed at the behaviour of some people on Wednesday" - full statement below.
Eats Everything and Fatboy Slim jointly released a new single last month 'From Bristol to Brighton' to pay homage to both of their hometowns. The pair had previously appeared together on Fatboy Slim's carpool DJ series, which has close to one million views on YouTube.
Read more: Partygoers climb walls of Lakota as event stopped
To mark the new single, a mural was painted below the Greyville Smythe underpass on Wednesday, which was meant to be the location of the surprise set that evening in the spirit of 90s rave culture. Police then decided it was an unsuitable location for the show and shut it down, according to HOMEBASS, the DJ's label. It was changed to Lakota's courtyard around two hours before the show started at 7.20pm.
When I arrived at 7pm, the crowd was already thick with people, mostly university students, ready to get their spot for the free rave. I heard mutterings through the crowd that some people had been waiting since 6pm to get in.
The queue was a strict one-in-one-out situation with just a couple of people trickling past the barriers at the time. There was a moment when a group of people stood near me, frustrated, and tried their luck at pushing towards the entrance. This seemed to flick a switch in the crowd of fans.
A witness from the event said she had a panic attack as she felt increasingly unsafe. Eva, 26, said it was 'dangerous' as 'young people blocked the bouncers' near the entrance.
Lakota managers were forced to shut down the show after fans stormed the entrance and jumped the walls to gain access to the courtyard. I saw cans and bottles being thrown into the air and over the wall of the courtyard.
The music halted several times while the organisers decided what to do but eventually it was deemed unsafe. Police attended, however, Avon and Somerset Police confirmed there were no arrests.
A spokesperson from Lakota said: "As the go-to venue for independent, underground gigs and entertainment, we were asked to host the launch of Eats Everything & Fatboy Slim’s new single release ‘Bristol To Brighton’. This presented an opportunity to host an exciting exclusive event and something which we have years of experience delivering.
"This event was on a first come first serve basis for 400 people plus our own staff, including bar staff, security and the management team. The invitations were communicated via Instagram through Save our Scene. As the gig got underway, there were a number of people trying to climb over barriers and walls to get access to the venue. People were refused access and asked repeatedly to leave as the event was full.
"A number of individuals ignored our instructions and escalated their behaviour to become physically aggressive by climbing crowd control barriers, throwing bottles and spitting at staff. This behaviour was unacceptable to us and endangered customers and our staff, so for the protection of staff and other customers we stopped the gig.
"We communicated this immediately to the people both inside and outside the venue and the crowd dispersed fairly quickly. The event duration was around one hour. We’re beyond disappointed at the behaviour of some people on Wednesday.
"Our usual crowd who come to Lakota are people who come out to have a good time. They understand we have sold out shows but certainly don’t behave in a way that’s aggressive to other customers or our staff."
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