this is an article from Paul Edge I got from another board Is The Rave Scene Dead? A recent article by URB asked the question 'Is the rave scene dead?`, lots of people have been asking me my opinion, so rather than keep making the same arguments over and over again, I have decided to put pen to paper and wear my heart on my sleeve. I find it amusing that when people ask this question, they leave the logical second half off, in my opinion the question should be "Is the rave scene dead or is the product just not good enough". Now let me elaborate. Assuming every car manufacturer in the world started selling cars without engines, and logically people stopped buying cars, would people ask the question "Is personal travel dead?" Or would they say "Cars are great...new form of travel needed urgently" I think possibly the latter. I have been involved in clubs and the underground for many years, I have seen the same question posted around the world, just before ironically, a major club explosion. Clubbing is a way of life for many people, it is a recreational form of escape that many choose. It mystifies me that when the dancefloor emptys, when clubs start suffering, people blame the way of life rather than focus on the product. The reality is, and this is no way being disrespectful to superstar DJs, that these guys are no longer groundbreaking. They play music that perpetuates the status quo, and that is their choice. For me clubbing is a life influencing thing, it is something I take very seriously. The fact that I happen to make a living out of it is even better, but even if I didn`t, I would still go to clubs. Witness message boards around the USA, the demand for club culture (rave culture) still exists, but the clubbers are choosing not to go out. Why? A number of social factors come into play. Firstly, the basis of all consumer driven products..Value for Money...The UK is different to virtually any other Western Economy - people are, for the large part, broke. Housing is expensive, Gas is expensive, cigarettes are expensive, taxes are high and so once you`ve paid all your monthly bills, you don`t have a lot of money left over. So people choose very carefully where they spend their money. They don`t waste it. Most people in the UK go out once a week, that has to suffice. When they go out, they make sure they are getting VFM. The USA is a wealthy country, or was before the current recession took hold. The money supply has been greatly reduced, middle America has had to tighten the purse strings. Whereas 10 years ago, people could afford to spunk $30 on a party, that wasn`t that good, now they are saying, "Well fuck it, I can stay in and watch the home shopping channel and save my money." Therein lies the problem. The product has ceased to inspire. Just because people don`t go out, doesn`t mean they don`t want to go out. They still go out, just not to parties. So someone is selling them better than the parties do, its quite simple. There was a time when Rave Culture in this country exploded. Why? What has changed? Kids are kids, so not that. Venues are venues so not that. Sound systems are sound systems so not that. What is left?...The Music...I don`t understand how difficult this is to comprehend. When music ceases to inspire, kids want the music less than they want the money it costs. Basic sales and basic economics. Another factor is the underage part. No club in Europe admits underage legally, those that do are shunned by the clubbers or society. There is a reason for this. Your tastes at 14 are not developed, you do not have the musical maturity to fully understand dance music...hence Britney, Justin bloody Timberlake et al. The US scene was made up of 14 year olds dictating musical policy. So the musical policy became 14 year old policy, hence the popularity of Oakenfold. like all 14 year old obsessions, it becomes a fad. Dance music is something you discover, it is a rebellion against corporate pap. The fact that 50% of the scene has grown up, doesn`t mean the scene is dying, it just means exactly that, the scene is growing up. So naturally, the "Superstar DJ Gods" who continue to try to appeal to the 14 year old mind, are discovering that in a demographically aging audience, their "draw" is diminishing. Promoters also have to step up here and take some responsibility. As their marketplace diminishes for the reason`s listed above, they react by cutting costs. The irony is they never cut costs where they should be, like the vastly over priced "Superstar DJ talent". No, they cut back on clubber care, security, quality of sound, innovation and responsibility. They lower door standards, to keep being able to pay for "Superstar DJ's". This in turn means the true clubber is forced to mix with people they don`t want to mix with, thats why they are clubbers. Why pay $25 to mix with a bunch of leery beer monsters, get attitude, be laughed at because you do not wear chinos and shirts if you are a bloke, or rip chord pants and cuban heels if you are a girl. These people do not belong in clubs, if I was a clubber, I certainly wouldn`t pay money for the privilege of hanging out with them. By reducing the lowest common demoninator for your clubbers, you then attract unsavoury elements. Then society steps in, i.e the Rave Act. Now is the time in the USA for club culture to explode. Club culture has always been a working class movement, working class defined by various socio-economic factors that currently prevail within the USA. It has nothing to do with drugs, if music is good enough, if the DJ is good enough, drugs become less and less a determining factor. I believe that everyone needs to get out of this "Emperor`s new clothes" mentality, the sad truth is most of the superstar DJ's in the USA simply are not good enough, musically. People are bored, an 18 year old needs to rebel. How can you rebel against anything when you get home and hear your mom and dad listening to what you were listening to a few hours earlier in a club. My mum, who I love very much, hates what I play, and rightly so. It has nothing to do with the quality of my music, it is purely about the attitude the music represents. I am not the biggest fan of drum and bass, but I respect the genre for these very reasons. The sad fact is that US clubs, and promoters need to have a major rethink of their policies. Innovation needs to be re-introduced, by innovation I mean the hungry young local DJ, who needs to be given prime time exposure instead of being relegated as a second class citizen in the DJ hierarchy. One off parties need to stop, weeklies engender a community spirit, an educational process musically that all clubbers undergo in Europe. Headliners need to be booked not only on draw, but also based on what they do behind the decks. If the party is good enough, people will support it, irrespective of what headlining talent you have playing. Exposure due to being able to buy it, or because of who you know, does not make you a good DJ. The magazines, who have a vested financial interest in hyping talentless individuals because in return their advertising budgets are met, are not the way to go to to get information. Magazines serve a purpose and there are some good commercial mags out there, but just because someone can afford to pay $10,000 for the front cover is no testament to ability. Finally, the kids need to be treated like first class citizens with an opinion that matters. They do after all pay our wages. If your club empties, at least have the repect for the people to listen to what they are saying. Ignoring them will just anger them, and rightly so. The rave scene is not dead, it may be in a stage of metamorphosis, thats about it.. Kind regards Paul Edge -If you think that the above statement holds any truth, and you can relate to anything that has been said here, please feel free to post this wherever you think may be appropriate. Peace...
