The Electric Sun Desert Music Festival was a music festival created and organized by musician and entrepreneur Tim Heidecker, and headlined by his band DKR. The venue was also used by Heidecker's business partner, Dr. San, to heavily promote the TCH Vape System created by San. Free samples of the vapes were given to all attendees. It ended with the deaths of 20 attendees and a large number of injuries due to ingestion of the TCH Vape System.
Tim announced the festival in S9E05. He said the festival would focus on electronic dance music and feature 250 DJs, a comedy tent, and performances by DKR. Gregg Turkington offered to set up a movie tent, but Tim rejected the idea.[1]
Festival attendees received a free TCH Vape System kit, with a blend developed by Dr. San, who would also give lectures about its benefits and usage. The vape kit blend consisted of the venom of the bufo alvarius toad, which would purportedly regulate the user's brain waves such that deep, monk-like meditation could be achieved. Tim advertised that the first 100 attendees were to receive this system.[2]
According to Tim, the festival went smoothly until DKR's performance of a new track, “Save Us,” about Tim's failing marriage to Juliana Serradimigni. He looked out at the crowd and saw “bodies dropping” from the toxic effects of the vape system. With no doctors on hand, EMS was called. Tim said first responders took some 40 minutes to arrive. Ultimately, the vapes took the lives of 20 attendees, with a further 156 hospitalized.[3][4]
Tim and Dr. San were arrested and jailed following the tragedy. Tim was released from jail following a deal with the district attorney in which Tim would do community service, as the investigation was focusing more on Dr. San.[5]