"The rave beat has its roots in house, rap, and even 70s 'funk,' which, as most honest ethnomusicologists realize, have their roots in African rhythms. In his book The Planet Drum, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart talks about the use of rhythm by all kinds of societies to 'drive' consciousness. (It's not a new realization; Plato feared musicians precisely because he knew that changes in musical canons often led to changes in governance.) The accelerated rhythm of the rave may be symptom of a speed-obsessed information society, or it may be cause, seeking to push us all into the hyperacceleration of Timewave Zero. As Ravers discover new levels of 'ecstatic' communal identification, they are not so far apart from the folk of Haiti, who like them, go to hear the drums, be with their fellow believers, dance, and escape from the spectacle and harshness of ordinary life."

An extract from Steve Mizrah: "The Ghost in the Machine: Haitian Voudoun and the Matrix".

Ravers are the people who listen to the techno music and go to raves, massive techno parties, or smaller underground parties and techno clubs.

A "rave" usually refers to a party, usually all night long, open to the general public, where loud "techno" music is mostly played and many people partake in a number of different chemicals, though the latter is far from necessary. The number of people at the event is unimportant; it can range from 50 people to 25,000 people. The cost of attendance is also unimportant - there have been good raves and bad raves at both ends of the cost spectrum (though in practice, the higher the price, the more commercial the event, and the lower the quality). At a rave, the DJ is a shaman, a priest, a channeller of energy - they control the psychic voyages of the dancers through his choice in hard-to-find music and their skill in manipulating that music, sometimes working with just a set of beats and samples, into a tapestry of mindbending music. A large part of the concept of raves is built upon sensory overload - a barrage of audio and very often visual stimuli are brought together to elevate people into an altered state of physical or psychological existence.

Rave Culture

Rave culture as a part of cyberculture/future culture, as defined in the Future Culture Manifesto:

Aforementioned psychedelic culture reached a "peak" with the community of Woodstock. Think of rave culture as woodstock in the 90's, though with obvious notable advancements and progressions: smaller and more specific communities allow for more woodstock-esque events to occur more often and produce a higher deree of community, the music reflects technology -- techno music is the mainstay - music that may often range between 0 and 160bpm that is almost entirely created on computers and modern audio technology and is an evolutionary mutation of disco music generally, and finally, raves are often times associated with psychedelic culture in a general desire to create one's own reality or be part of some sort of *gestalt-consciencous* event. And, most importantly, the idea of raves is to have fun!!! We most not overlook outlets of communal entertainment in futureculture. At raves, the vibe is generally happy and easy to catch, the people generally fun, the music is cutting edge, and, if you want, you can further entertain yourself with nootropic or other psycho-active substances.

Basically, raves are the entertainment aspect of the evolving futureculture as it stands now. Undoubtedly raves will eventually morph into something else, as this particular side of culture rises and falls quickly in proportion with people's day to day lives. Raves, as mentioned before, are deeply intertwined with technology as well as some aspects of psychedelic culture, thus their inclusion in futureculture.

Why Rave?

The world that we live in is far from perfect. In actuality, it's a mess! There are wars being fought over money, power, religion and other selfish disagreements. There is hatred caused by bigotry and racism. There is hunger and famine. There is crime caused by greed. There is chaos caused by confusion. There is an overall lack of communication among us fellow humans. We are slowly destroying ourselves. Somewhere along our historical chain of events, humankind took the wrong turn and kept on going. However, the youth today can either keep following the same old road or start leading a new path for themselves. Though not one person alone can change this world, we as a people can send a positive message from our international movement; and our movement is called RAVE.

RAVES are a spawning ground for inspiring today's youth towards building a new awareness in their individuality. An awareness that promotes inner peace, open-mindedness and free expression of one's thoughts and feelings about themselves and of others. It is a bonding ritual that promotes peace with all, love with one another, and unity for all humankind. RAVES are a celebration of life; an escapism against the reality of the world's imperfections. It is an anticipated social event where one can release their anxieties, fears and worries while at the same time gain insight that there is hope.

RAVES are a therapeutic unified gathering that can continuously help an individual learn more about their strengths and weaknesses and can also help channel their energy towards a positive direction in their life. For those RAVERS who truly understand the concept of RAVING (DJ's spinning powerful Techno/House music as the masses perform an all night tribal dancefest), the event itself becomes a spiritual and educational experience. However, the common conclusion that is reached is consistently the same:

"That the world isn't perfect and neither am I. And though I can't save the world, I can still promote peace, love and unity. And by doing so, I can save my own little world and make a difference in every environment I walk upon. Therefore, my intentions in life are good. And knowing that I am a positive impact on other peoples' lives, I am at incredible peace with myself. I can continue on living my dream as my existence forges on, making great contributions to society. I am a vital member of the international RAVE movement and we have a very clear and positive message to deliver. That we all need to share the power of love and that we must unite ourselves as one people -- for peace..."

Links & References

Techno Music

Closer look to techno music.

On Peace, Love, Dancing, and Drugs

A sociological analysis of rave culture.
By Eric Stiens.

alt.rave FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions list for alt.rave newsgroup.

Hyperreal

Rave Culture Archives.

P(eace), L(ove), U(nity), R(espect)

PLUR has something to do with some, but not all, techno/rave styles.
By Laura La Gassa.