Junior Vasquez' Crystal Confession
Jul 31, 2005 20:09:06 GMT -5
Post by कामसूत्र on Jul 31, 2005 20:09:06 GMT -5
This is relevant to dance music as one of the legends almost died and we almost didn't find out about it until now.
Junior Vasquez has admitted he was addicted to methamphetamine for five years, almost dying from the drug when he suffered a seizure five months ago.
The New York superstar DJ said he’d started using the drug to help him concentrate during his legendary 10 hour sets then had rapidly developed a habit of the highly addictive drug.
“Before crystal, I never had a problem with any substances, drugs never appealed to me—I don’t even drink,” Junior told Next Magazine.
“I didn’t realize it then, but the real reason I was doing crystal was because I hated my job. Hated it,” he continued. “I was over the long sets and—to be brutally honest—I was getting tired of the scene. But for five years I couldn’t admit it to myself, so I put myself in a walking coma in an attempt to enjoy it. It didn’t work.”
Skrufff New York contributor Matt Kalkhoff contributor, a long term fan of Junior’s, spotted something was seriously wrong in February last year when he heard his mixing going seriously awry at a gig at the Sound Factory.
“The mixing was just atrocious most of the time. Honestly, after seeing that movie "It's All Gone...Pete Tong," I began to think that maybe Junior was just losing his hearing,” Matt told Skrufff.
“It did get to the point where I wondered if he'd ever be able to pull it together again or if his career was just fizzling out and might soon end. I'm absolutely thrilled that the latter is not the case.”
Matt said Junior’s DJing and mixing is now flawless again, ‘remarkably better than before’,” he added.
“Let me tell you, it’s made a world of difference, I don't think I've heard him play so well in quite a few years. He really turned it out both here in New York City and then the following weekend at the Pavilion on Fire Island. I’m so happy to have the legend back,” said Matt.
Larry Tee, who experienced similar drug problems during the 90s, was equally sympathetic, telling Skrufff “I think it is an important message that Junior sent out to the dance community to honestly talk about his meth problem.”
“I can totally sympathize with his hating DJing because the New York club circuit is a tough muthaf**ker to deal with. Plus the late 90s music was no banquet. I can honestly say that Junior's sets in the early 90s were my all-time favourites. He is a magician when he is 'on',” said Larry.
“But a crystal crowd doesn’t care what you play as long as you play it a long time and that mentality creates a good environment for bad boring music.”
“Since I am an addict in recovery for 8 years, I cant really lecture the 'children' on drugs except to say my life has been more beautiful and my relationships more satisfying without 'tina',” Larry concluded.
“But if you do play with crystal, staple a condom to your penis. I have way too may young friends that have contracted AIDS recently and though the life expectancy IS longer these days, the drug cocktails are nauseating and the surviving is absolutely miserable. As Sylvester said near the end in the new biography 'Fabulous Sylvester', "I am dying and it isn’t pretty',” he said.
www.nyblade.com/2005/7-8/viewpoint/editorials/harsh.cfm (‘Many gay men do drugs, well, because they can. Without the constraints of children and with a lot of disposable income, who could be surprised that many of them are doing something that is fun? And crystal, at least the first few times, is fun. Sex is spectacular, you can dance for hours and hours, and you’re not hungry. You can even work at your job, harder and longer than you ever thought possible. (But ). . .’)
www.crystalmeth.org (Crystal Meth Anonymous: For the addict - Recovery from addiction to crystal meth is possible . . .’)
Jonty Skrufff (Skrufff.com)
www.trackitdown.net/news/1090.html
Junior Vasquez has admitted he was addicted to methamphetamine for five years, almost dying from the drug when he suffered a seizure five months ago.
The New York superstar DJ said he’d started using the drug to help him concentrate during his legendary 10 hour sets then had rapidly developed a habit of the highly addictive drug.
“Before crystal, I never had a problem with any substances, drugs never appealed to me—I don’t even drink,” Junior told Next Magazine.
“I didn’t realize it then, but the real reason I was doing crystal was because I hated my job. Hated it,” he continued. “I was over the long sets and—to be brutally honest—I was getting tired of the scene. But for five years I couldn’t admit it to myself, so I put myself in a walking coma in an attempt to enjoy it. It didn’t work.”
Skrufff New York contributor Matt Kalkhoff contributor, a long term fan of Junior’s, spotted something was seriously wrong in February last year when he heard his mixing going seriously awry at a gig at the Sound Factory.
“The mixing was just atrocious most of the time. Honestly, after seeing that movie "It's All Gone...Pete Tong," I began to think that maybe Junior was just losing his hearing,” Matt told Skrufff.
“It did get to the point where I wondered if he'd ever be able to pull it together again or if his career was just fizzling out and might soon end. I'm absolutely thrilled that the latter is not the case.”
Matt said Junior’s DJing and mixing is now flawless again, ‘remarkably better than before’,” he added.
“Let me tell you, it’s made a world of difference, I don't think I've heard him play so well in quite a few years. He really turned it out both here in New York City and then the following weekend at the Pavilion on Fire Island. I’m so happy to have the legend back,” said Matt.
Larry Tee, who experienced similar drug problems during the 90s, was equally sympathetic, telling Skrufff “I think it is an important message that Junior sent out to the dance community to honestly talk about his meth problem.”
“I can totally sympathize with his hating DJing because the New York club circuit is a tough muthaf**ker to deal with. Plus the late 90s music was no banquet. I can honestly say that Junior's sets in the early 90s were my all-time favourites. He is a magician when he is 'on',” said Larry.
“But a crystal crowd doesn’t care what you play as long as you play it a long time and that mentality creates a good environment for bad boring music.”
“Since I am an addict in recovery for 8 years, I cant really lecture the 'children' on drugs except to say my life has been more beautiful and my relationships more satisfying without 'tina',” Larry concluded.
“But if you do play with crystal, staple a condom to your penis. I have way too may young friends that have contracted AIDS recently and though the life expectancy IS longer these days, the drug cocktails are nauseating and the surviving is absolutely miserable. As Sylvester said near the end in the new biography 'Fabulous Sylvester', "I am dying and it isn’t pretty',” he said.
www.nyblade.com/2005/7-8/viewpoint/editorials/harsh.cfm (‘Many gay men do drugs, well, because they can. Without the constraints of children and with a lot of disposable income, who could be surprised that many of them are doing something that is fun? And crystal, at least the first few times, is fun. Sex is spectacular, you can dance for hours and hours, and you’re not hungry. You can even work at your job, harder and longer than you ever thought possible. (But ). . .’)
www.crystalmeth.org (Crystal Meth Anonymous: For the addict - Recovery from addiction to crystal meth is possible . . .’)
Jonty Skrufff (Skrufff.com)
www.trackitdown.net/news/1090.html
