From: phuag@csv.warwick.ac.uk (Mr C J Tilbury)
Newsgroups: alt.rave
Subject: Re: Rave is dead.
Followup-To: alt.rave
Date: 19 Nov 1992 15:04:55 -0000
Organization: Computing Services, University of Warwick, UK
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: anise.csv.warwick.ac.uk
Summary: Long Live house.
Keywords: rave, house music, dance music, clubs.

In article <1992Nov19.105241.6172@bristol.ac.uk> ccjy@bristol.ac.uk (APATHY=) writes:
>In article <BxwrEy.FHy@dcs.ed.ac.uk> djts@dcs.ed.ac.uk (David Sumpter) writes:
>>It seems strange that in the clubs all over our country, the top DJ's are
>>not playing rave music but good old house music. Why is there no
>>alt.music.house or something.
>
>Well, probably because thats a step backwards.

*BARF*. Go jump in a pond. House music is an evolving art form. The stuff being
turned out today, by the likes of the Aloof, Gypsy, Uncle bobs Burly house,
Havana etc... has been produced by experimenting with and combining other music
forms/styles with house music. 

Get it. House is here to stay for a long while yet.  Its not one type of music.
Its the great grand-daddy of whole styles of the stuff.  Its the foundation 
of your "raves", and of modern (post disco) dance/club culture itself. 

[House music started the rave scene ( It was "Acid house" back then, when E
was something new, and everyone was off their tits.)]

>Lets face it, i couldn't find one DJ in our local clubs in Bristol who even
>attempted to play anything past Moby - go and 'Get ready for this - 2
>unlimited'

Nice one. Pick the most abused piece of house music ( "go" is still a damn fine
tune even now ), and the most commercialised crap you could think of.  The
fact the DJs in bristol clubs are unimaginative morons, or restrained by
hyperactive money-grabbing club owners who think "Ebenezzer Goode" is a top
dance tune, is more a reflection the sorry state of the club scene in bristol
than house music.

Assuming of course you mean "club", as opposed to "nightclub", in which case 
you don't really know what you're talking about.
 
>Rave isn't dead fool, its gone back where it was best. 
>
>Underground

See my comment later.

>Radio in britain wouldn't contemplate playing anything past Tetris, or a so
>called rave track 'smart e's - trip to trumpton'

Yeah. This is certainly true. 

>About the closest thing we get now in the charts is The Prodigy and Altern 8.

[sarcastic comment about kids, speed and dummys deleted]

>Which is fine by me, but don't be fooled by the charts man.
>Its only a radio chart, people only buy what they hear.
>And if they ain't playing it all, the charts can't be fair now can they!!!

The death knell of rave (circa 88/89 flavour) was simply that it became too 
big for itself.  And a certain Nanny-Facist conservative MP whose private 
members bill gave local authoritys and police obscene powers to seize 
equipment and funds, and arrest organisers.

Singles charts never had, and never will have anything to do with the dance
music scene. Why? Simple. Because clubbers/ravers/whatevers don't dance to
perky little 3 minute pop tunes, which play well on the radio.  They like
extended 12"s, well mixed in.  

Thats why the record companies hate dance music.  There are no real "names" to 
market.  The tunes have a short shelf life.  In short, an advertisers
nightmare.  If you're going to talk about charts then you should at least use
a chart that bears some relation to the scene.  Try a DJ recommended chart, 
such as the ones found each fortnight in DJ magazine,  or the charts that
pop up in mixmag every month.  They are at least compiled with sales of dance
music records, be they 7", 12" or EP.

>I don't beleive in the charts. I never have.
>
>RAVE IS NOT DEAD, AND NO WAY IS HARDCORE EVER GONNA DIE.

And the world will go on forever and ever amen.  Nothing else has an indefinite
right to live, so why should Hardcore be any different.

>If rave is dead, why are 60,000 people going to exeter in 2 weeks time??

Above, you said that rave has gone back underground. 60,000 people is an 
UNDERGROUND event?!?!?!? Yeah, thats REAL underground. I'm sure the police
don't have a CLUE that 60,000 e-d up ravers resplendant with whistles and
bobble hats, vicks vapour rub in tow, are turning up in exeter in 2 weeks.

Or if they didn't, they do now. :-)

In 88/89 underground meant turning up in a car park at a motorway service
station at around 12pm,  waiting for a phone call on a public phone box,  or
listening to a pirate radio station for the exact location of the rave to be 
announced.  It meant police setting up road blocks as soon as they knew, to
try (and mostly fail) to stop the ravers arriving.  

You had to make an effort to go to a rave back then.

Not phone some credit card hotline (All major cards accepted dontcha know!) 
order your ticket for 20 quid, and then jump on the train.

>Alot of people for something that is dead???

No, alot of people for something that is _different_.  Most raves these days
bear little relation to the raves of 88/89,  mainly due to the above mentioned
private members bill.

			Keep the faith,

	
				Chris.


DISCLAIMER : There are underground raves going on in the UK at the moment.
	     They're organised by travellers, mobile sound systems like
	     spiral tribe, and the like.  You won't find them advertised in 
	     the likes of MixMag.  Thats why they're underground.