• MDMA &
    Empathogenic
    Drugs

    Welcome Guest!

Degradation of Rave Culture?

Status
Not open for further replies.
W

WhatHappened

Bluelighter
Joined
Dec 20, 2004
Messages
74
Location
atown
2 part question:
I often hear older ravers talking about the golden years of partying, or mentioning the decline of the culture with some sadness in their eyes. I was curious as to what kind of changes specifically brought about this "death" in the scene. Over-commercialization? Increased emphasis on the drugs? Are clubbers today just missing something?

I went to an event recently, and enjoyed myself immensely. The music was crucial and i really liked the way people could just let go, dance, and be happy. In my state of sobriety, I couldn't help but notice how just about everybody looked like they were rolling, or otherwise fucked up. Is this the only way most people can have fun? Was it always like this?

I'd be psyched to get some insight from old schoolers who have been through it all. Thanks in advance :)

(hope this is right forum)
 
Man, when I first started clubbing/raving it was all about going to the gig, listen to the music and hang with the friends you loved, now, it just seems to be about the attitude, and the newest mobile phone...
 
what killed rave?

media attention. period.

the attention brought to rave by the media caused the following to occur:
people who were just there to do drugs began to arrive in droves... that led to shady promoters who didnt really care about music... which led to less than stellar djs... which all snowballed into where things are now.... being nothing.

media attention is the suxors.
 
^^Yeah right what annoys me is how the whole of middle Britain looked down its nose at dance music and the scene that followed it during the early days.

Then once the big business'es cottoned on to the fact that it wasn't going away and there was money to be made their whole attitude changed to something like "yeah here's what we've got for you,it's o.k to enjoy it now we use the music for our adverts/promotions"
I mean BMW flaunting the Prodigy to sell cars,every BBC morning show like Car Booty and Changing rooms fills its links with drum n bass and the like,to name a few.

It just winds me up to think back to the emergence of the whole scene and see the exact same people shunning and slating it.
 
The quick answer to both your questions is yes it's always been like this.

1. Everything is better in hindsight. The music was better, the drugs were better, the people were better. You get the idea. It's the same in every scene. Eventually everyone either grows out of it and into other scenes, or gets a job in it.

2. A couple of weeks ago I went to a rave and I didn't have any drugs. I had a really good time there, it was one of the most fun raves I've been to and a surprising number of people were straight too. Not everyone goes to take drugs but too many people do in my opinion. After the rave I went to on the weekend, we overheard this guy saying he had the best time ever and only described it in terms of drugs.
 
Look for smaller, less commercial events.
But big commercials can be OK to, depends on the DJ:s and whether theyre taking it seriously. John Digweed and Carl Cox blew my mind on the opening of Space, Ibiza, last summer and i dont even like that place much.
 
exarkann said:
what killed rave?

media attention. period.

the attention brought to rave by the media caused the following to occur:
people who were just there to do drugs began to arrive in droves... that led to shady promoters who didnt really care about music... which led to less than stellar djs... which all snowballed into where things are now.... being nothing.

media attention is the suxors.
Click to expand...

Pretty spot on here. Now im not an old school raver, only been pillin for the last couple of years but i must say the music at my local trance club is 100 times better than taht of a rave, they just need higher quality music.
 
delusional said:
If you guys were @ TAO you wouldn't believe how many people were rolling....
Click to expand...
I was at TAO and alot of people were rolling, but what do you expect its a rave. TAO wasnt even as bad compared to Monster Massive....at TAO everyone was rolling off the green toyotas and those were nice uppy happy bombs, at MM everyone was on the Pink Porsches....everyone was walking around looking like zombies..... and MM was fucking PACKED compared to TAO.

I had more fun at TAO though
 
Umm Im not sure ware you guys are from. But in the last year. Raves around here have been getting better. With better DJ's, bigger venues, better light shows, more ppl in attendence and so on.... Im in Canada btw
 
I was curious as to what kind of changes specifically brought about this "death" in the scene.
Click to expand...

hmm well I'm relatively new to the rave scene, but here in England everyone's complaining that Ketamine is destroying the scene. Too many people just zonked out in corners staring intently at walls for hours and not being atall sociable(I admit I take ketamine at raves though I try to balance it out with stimulants)
I guess in some ways what made the rave scene so prominent in the 1980s(in the UK) was the underground scene's united hatred of Maggie Thatcher(who i think outlawed raves in the first place though I could be wrong) it was an outright statement against facism and I think this has subdued to an extent. I could well be wrong but I've heard this off a few people.
I guess I'm not older too really understand how much the scene has changed but to me they are still pretty amazing. Bring on the Summer!:D
 
spookz said:
I was at TAO and alot of people were rolling, but what do you expect its a rave. TAO wasnt even as bad compared to Monster Massive....at TAO everyone was rolling off the green toyotas and those were nice uppy happy bombs, at MM everyone was on the Pink Porsches....everyone was walking around looking like zombies..... and MM was fucking PACKED compared to TAO.

I had more fun at TAO though
Click to expand...

TAO's Batch of green toyotas SUCKED.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now I have only been partying about 2 ½ years or so but I don’t think the scene changes all that much. I mean sure venues do and people come in and out, but for the people that stay THEY ARE THE ONES CHANGING. I know my attitude has changed in the past few years and I see that it’s me changing and not the partys, just my role in my current scene. Parties are not the same as when I started 3 years ago (and I’m not calling myself “old school” or anything like that, I’m just stating facts.) The vibe has changed and so have most of the people.

I was not around in 98 or the “golden” days of raveing so I can’t really speak much on this issue. But as far as for people “going for the drugs” maybe that’s true…..


….. but maybe that’s been the case all along, we were just to new and ignorant to see that.
 
A few insights from an old timer:

While I agree to a point, I always bristle a little when someone blames "media attention" to the downfall of the rave culture - or to any movement. (And let me preface this by saying that I can speak only of the US and as someone who works in the media.) When a scene beings to grow, the worst mistake people make is to try and keep it "undergound." If it is a good thing, people are going to naturally be curious and want experience it for themselves and you simply can not stop that...ever. SO what happens is that everyone involved in the beginning tries to keep the secret and let the media, with only a vague idea of what is going on, begins to create its own spin on things. In short, instead of showing the world what the culture is all about, we sat back and let the media define the movement for us. the media, is simply a toll, it is neither good or bad. How you use it, or how you let it use you is what is either right or wrong.

Also, the crazy drug legislation in America has managed to made taking part in a rave the moral equivalent of taking part in a blood orgy. You can be arrested for simply throwing a rave today, glowsticks and vics can get you charged with possessing drug paraphenailia. This all happened without so much as a peep from the rave culture. We allowed ourselves to be labeled dope fiends.

Finally, I think the "hip/hop" culture has had a really bad impact on the rave scene. The simple joy of gathering together, having fun and digging some great music now has to deal with all the "bling-bling."
 
Trojanman4883 said:
TAO's Batch of green toyotas SUCKED.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Click to expand...
Whaaaaaaaaat?

That was one of my favorite rolls, and the first good batch came in around November/December so im sure alot of good ones were around.

Most people were enjoying thier rolls that night.
 
In more northly parts of the UK the rave scene is alive and well and stomping around to hard tek ... I've only been up here for 4 years, but I'd say it's better now than it ever has been whilst I've been up here - more of them with more people going to each one.
Thing is, the real thing is still pretty far removed from the mainstream, and so it keeps all the muppets and commercial types out.
Keep it real kids, rave isn't dead ... it's underground, baby!

(maybe in the US of A it's dead, I wouldn't know ... I think there rave means happy hardcore so it's probably completely different ...)
 
The rave scene was built on being alternative, when it lost that, it lost itself... and it was destined to die from the start: It was a futurist movement.

Still, I'm not too sad, I've got to say, I think it was pretty fake... sure, it's easy PLURing your ass of whe on pills... but keeping that shit up when your not... I don't think 99% of the population works like that.
 
Hrmmm. You're all too jaded. There are still good fun fresh events out there, you've just gotta look for the crews that are less than 2-3 years old ond you'll find the love.

Perhaps 99% of the population dont work like that but I have found the majority of people at (some) raves to be accepting, open-minded and dedicated to worthwhile ideals even without drugs.

No I don't believe in PLUR, but I do believe in humanity. Feel free to call me naive.

In terms of Ketamine well that has been fucking up the British scene since the early 90s. Its not such a problem here cos it's not so widespread and the K-heads at raves are the quirky few in the corner, they dont bother anyone much in Aus. What is killing our rave scene is GHB/1,4B.

I also don't think that considering the rave scene as 'alternative' is worthwhile or meaningful. I mean even at the birth of the rave it very quickly turned into events with 20,000+ people in 89 during the summer of love. For some (eg the crusty ravers) it was the continuation of an already alternative lifestyle but for many others it was simply a case of trying something new and interesting. In Australia the rave is part of mainstream entertainment, like it or not. It has been this way for a looong time.

People in the scen like to feel as if they are part of something 'special', 'underground' or 'exclusive'. Everyone likes to feel special. Everyone likes to feel as if they were the one to 'discover' something. But that doesn't reflect the reality of the rave scene, nor does it need to.
 
back in the day

Started going to raves in Toronto when I was 15, almost 12 years ago now. Partied almost every weekend, for 4 years. The events weren't raided, the drugs were AMAZING (pure most of the time) and plentiful. Mind you the prices have dropped, but I can now get E at almost any club, unlike before. I stopped going due to the change in the atmosphere ... too many "foreigners" ...killed it for me. Buff ginos and ginas (among others) ... only there to try and get laid. Dj's became mainstream ... spinning was a sight to behold once upon a time. Now you can spin cd's!hahaha ... They were gods. We.. their flock, swayed to their beat in time all the while... the pill taking hold of our bodies and minds.
Orgies in giant rooms occassionally sent me home. If I wanted to indulge in that, there's always Holland or porn (sigh). Prices went down for events, eventually leading to mass crowds of dumbasses unable to process the scene and introduced commercialism. Sad but true. Prices are up again, which keeps some "followers" from going ..but some mass events and promoters seem to still keep a good vibe about them. Media got the worst of the public and raids became commonplace. I'm all for equality and everyone having fun... but it's just not the same. Almost everything I loved about raving has changed. It's become a chaotic mess of ungrateful followers. So be it. I have my memories. Rave on for the new generation ...it's legacy will continue to grab hold of us all in different ways.

DESTINATION ECSTACY-
Enter the unknown dressed as your true loving self ready for a night of pure bliss and body/mental indulgence - buy A single pill on your way to your favourite room with your fav dj - settle in a spot with your fellow flock and deposit baggage including tiger balm, candy, drinks, camera, glowsticks ect - warm up and dose that pill with a nice massage - hug and share doobies with the group next to you -feel the rush - face your god and immerse your whole body and mind into the music... till you cant dance anymore - crawl home and recover or enjoy the afterglow with friends - then wait for the weekend to start again.

How I miss those days....we'll always have the memories.

:|
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top