Rave Culture: Individual And Collective Identity Theories

In this final chapter we will be looking at how the theories discussed in chapters one and two can be applied to a case study of rave culture. Due to the many variations and movements of rave that have existed over the decades and that exist today, we will be focusing on two specific areas: the British 1980/90s sound system group Spiral Tribe and the 1980s psy-trance scene in Goa. Within these studies, the theory that the individual self is social (James, 1890, Mead, 1913) and seeks acceptance within a collective will become apparent, as rave culture acts as an alternative to mainstream society in many ways and members who form this phenomenon seek a heightened sense of belonging that they may not be able to find elsewhere. This is visible in the Goa psy-trance movement, where hippies and NATs from Europe and America sought an alternative, organised religion and meaning of life in this Eastern-influenced music culture. Before applying these theories in detail, we will chronicle the rave culture from its stylistic origins in 1960s disco to the free party raver boom in the 80s and 90s to rave culture today. The religious and spiritual meanings attached to the culture will be significant in our study and link explicitly to the collective elements of rave. It is also important to consider the underlying connotations explored in chapter two, such as resistance to a dominant society, as this concept has played a large part in subcultures post-1960 and it cannot be ignored in the study of rave. We will also briefly examine how the movement has altered over time in its transition from underground to commercial, which took place post-Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

The notorious rave culture prevailed in and around fields, warehouses and spiritual monuments for many years before the Public Order Act 1986 and subsequent Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 led to the abrupt decline of the drug-fuelled parties. The earliest origins of rave culture stemmed from the 60s, when in clubs, DJs started stringing tracks with similar beats together to keep the crowd dancing (Ott and Herman, 2003). It was also the decade of the hippie movement, which amounted to the 1967 Summer of Love. Hippies ventured across Europe and America, gathering in fields to embark upon a spiritual journey of discovering an alternative lifestyle through experimentation with drugs and sex, fuelled by the notion of `peace and free love`. Hippies later developed into the 1970s British subculture of NATs and it was here that the free party movement began to crystallise. In the mid-80s, acid house hit the UK and illegal raves up and down the country, especially London and Manchester, were appearing left, right and centre. By the early 1990s, underground raves had become so well-established that in 1993 the British dance scene was worth £1.8 billion a year (Collin, 2009, p.293). The moral codes of conduct for this party scene became apparent - Peace, Love, Unity and Respect (P.L.U.R). This acronym was coined in 1992 at a Storm Rave in Brooklyn, New York City (NYC) by DJ Frankie Bones (John, 2004, p.4), but held its origins in the lifestyles of hippies and NATs. The P.L.U.R foundations of rave (and the precedent hippie culture) created the empathetic, loving community it is so renowned for (alongside the use of amphetamines such as MDMA and ecstasy), leading to the practicing of communion. This communion is where you see the disintegration of hierarchies and an "intimate fellowship" (Ott and Herman, 2003). Rave was "notorious for mixing all kinds of styles on the same dance floor and attracting a range of previously opposed subcultures from football hooligans to New Age hippies" (Redhead, 1993, p.3). People came together regardless of skin colour, religious belief or social ladder, and "everybody shares the dance floor, dancing, touching and sweating with somebody they might not otherwise speak to" (Aaronson, 1999), and this is what sets rave apart from the preceding British subcultures (mods, rockers, punks). These other groups often associated with other members of their subculture and there were often rivalries, such as the mods and rockers. Today rave culture still exists, but it differs from previous movements in terms of authorship, location, authenticity and meaning. For example, DJs today are treated and paid the same as rock stars, with artists such as Skrillex and Bassnectar earning between $11-15 million per year (Phaneuf, 2012). DJs in the 80s were "not even announced... [or] applauded for their performance; most of the time we [did] not even see them" (Gaillot, 1999, p.52). This is because it was not about who was playing the music; it was about immersing yourself in the experience. This new treatment for DJs is a result of the commercialism now attached to rave that occurred after the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994, which outlawed outdoor parties of twenty people or more with music that included "sounds wholly or predominantly characterised by the emission of a succession of repetitive beats" (legislation.gov.uk, 1994).

The focus of this chapter will lie in the meanings behind rave and how they relate to individual and collective identity theories. Between the years of 1988 to the early 90s, free parties accelerated and Spiral Tribe, a sound system group who put on free raves across Britain, were responsible for a lot of them. They also played a huge part in the run-ins the culture had with the law and the Conservative government during this time, which eventually led to the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994. Free raves caused an uproar of moral panics due to their large-scale, widespread nature and disturbance of local residences and have been linked to the recession and a Conservative leadership, whereby a "deepening disenchantment with the government" (Townsend, 2010) resulted in rebellious behaviour. The locations of Spiral Tribe events, such as derelict buildings, warehouses and fields, complies with subcultural resistance theories discussed in chapter two, as the taking over of space was interpreted as the celebration of "temporary liberation from the prevailing truth and form of established order" (Bakhtin, 1968, p.10). This was similar to how mods, rockers and teddy boys etc. created the illusion of freedom from mainstream society by forming alternative groups and spaces with their own moral codes. One of the 40,000 attendees of the Spiral Tribe (and other sound system groups such as Bedlam and Circus Warp) Castlemorton free party in 1992, which was eventually shut down by the police after 4 days, explained how "We chose to live this way and reject the hassles associated with a conventional way of life" (Guest, 2009), which conforms with an escapism from the dominant mainstream. Brewster and Broughton 2000 cited by Ottman and Herman 2003 explained how raves were "about creating something new... A club has a place... but a rave was made of possibilities" (p.370). Through the co-optation of space without authorisation, and the abandonment of social order, it meant no rules were in place, so the possibilities were endless and social constructions could not affect their alternative, utopian lifestyle. However, the Spiral Tribe ethos was not rooted in a rebellion against authority, although this is how it may have been perceived. Sebastian, a member of Spiral Tribe explained that "with our music and our parties... we`re trying to get back to where we were before Western Civilisation fucked it all up" (Reynolds, 1998, 142). It was about reverting back to simpler times of tribal communities, survival and freedom, before social restrictions, politics, media and laws created boundaries. Raves were "pro-hedonism rather than anti-authority [but] became political by default" (Bainbridge, 2014) when leaders such as Margaret Thatcher became determined to "make life as difficult as possible for these hippie convoys" (Reynolds, 1998, p.136). A more updated theory of subcultural resistance that is much more suited to the rave phenomenon is one proposed by Angela McRobbie, who explains how "1990s youth seek and use `pleasure` as a symbolic escape from the social tensions of their times" (Wilson, 2002). This can be applied directly to the 90s free parties and Spiral Tribe, as it was orientated around pleasure and freedom, via the use of mood-enhancing drugs such as ecstasy, and the inhabiting of large, unauthorised spaces. McRobbie states that these "pleasure-seeking behaviours" are a "contemporary version of subcultural `resistance`" (ibid.) and she argues here that by replacing the political implications of resistance with "a more mundane, micrological level of everyday practices" then we can see "the sustaining, publicizing and extending of the subcultural enterprise" (McRobbie, 1994, p.162). This theory can explain why late 80s to early 90s rave differed to preceding subcultures such as punk, as resistance took place via hedonism and escapism rather than conspicuous rebellion. Another essential meaning that should be explored is the religious and spiritual components of rave. Although the social theories of resistance and escapism are plausible "it ignores the poignant and meaningful spiritual experiences [of]... raves" (Hutson, 1994, p.54). Although Spiral Tribe did comply to subcultural resistance theories on the surface, when analysed further, spiritual connotations begin to arise too. Mark, a member of Spiral Tribe, explained why they kept their parties illegal: "it`s only outside the law that there`s any real life to be had... Rave is about people creating their own reality. At our parties, you step into the circle and enter ritual space, Spiral Tribe reality" (Reynolds, 1998, p.142); this indicates that resistance stemmed from a spiritual root. These connotations are paramount in the application of individual and collective identity, because those that attended Spiral Tribe parties were looking for something more meaningful to mundane reality and this was found in these alternative communities of free raves.

We will now discuss the psy-trance movement in Goa, India, as this search for alternative communities seen in Spiral Tribe dominates this culture. Goa psy-trance developed when the south-west state of India became a popular hippie spot after the decline of the counterculture in the early 70s (Papadimitropolos, 2009, p.3). The subculture was drawn to Goa due to the spiritual nature of India and the influences of Dharmic religion, meditation and hashish (Kalepu, 2015). In the 1980s, the electronic music scene had become huge, with the first electronic song being a Kraftwerk track in 1970 (ibid). Goa became a stop off point for hippies and NATs on what became known as the "party trail" between international rave cities/islands becoming "a utopian destination for the devotees of another form of western spiritually informed popular culture" (Partridge, 2006, p.46). The sound of Goa psy-trance complimented the effects of LSD, characterised by "a steady kick drum, swirling layers of staccato [Eastern] sound... outworldly samples and hypnotic alterations in timbre" (John, 2004, p.275). This led to a transcendent, trance-induced spiritual experience where the music was described as mystical and the DJs were seen as gurus guiding "dancers on a spiritual journey during the course of an all-night party" (ibid., p.47). The obscurity of Goan psy-trance came from hippies collecting `mind-boggling` psychedelic music, sharing it with each other, getting high and having parties. This sharing and celebration of an unestablished, underground genre they labelled `special music` (Partridge, 2006, p.46) created a clandestine culture, and those involved formed part of an exclusive collective. Each member shared alternative interests in spirituality and lifestyle, thus creating a heightened sense of belonging. Reverting back to the theories of individual identity in chapter one, proposed by George Herbert Mead, the self is an entity that is very much social, therefore people whose need for belonging was not fulfilled in the realm of family life, or who had alternative beliefs to the `parent culture` and mainstream society, looked elsewhere. I propose a variation of Mead`s "generalised other" whereby those inhabiting Goa rejected the broader Western society that the individual internalises through socialisation. This rejection of society`s views and beliefs led them to seek an "alternative other", which was found in the East, to assimilate into their own identities. This "alternative other" found in Goa became part of those who aspired to search for other ways of being and behaving, in which they inculcated into their individual identity. The level of spirituality involved in Goan psy-trance was high, and those that attended these parties in the 80s were not `casual hippies`; they were "deep into the trance with a bindi on their bonce" (Bussmann, 1998, p.108). This demonstrates the "alternative self" that ravers internalised. DJs in this culture were placed on a spiritual pedestal, their omnipotent powers consisting of the mixing of psychedelic tracks, fuelling the LSD trips of ravers that allowed them to transcend mundane reality. One raver stated that Goa Gil, the most influential DJ within this movement, "really was a religious leader" (ibid., p.134). This culture of techno-shamanism had a ritual of trance-dance, which led to ravers sensing "the permeability of [their] bodily housing, not only to dissolve in communion with everyone present but to connect to the earth and the entire universe" (Saldanha, 2007, p.70). This emphasises the collective elements of the culture, whereby the Western structural determinants of class and social group disintegrated through the communion and intense experiences of unity and a deeper meaning and reverence of life. This allowed for an acceptance that is not possible for these individuals in Western society, so those participating in the movement re-built their individual identity through membership of a solid indiscriminate `neo-tribe`. This concept of neo-tribe brings me to the application of Michel Maffesoli, discussed in chapter two. Psy-trance members were united through their shared state of mind, lifestyle and appearance, which is pinnacle to Maffesoli`s neo-tribe. Rather than forming groups based on class etc. this unique culture came together through a mutual yearning for acceptance, quality of life and spiritual awakening. The members of this group were easily distinguishable by their psychedelic dress sense and, inevitably, their choice of music at all-night raves. All of these factors together produced a modern day tribe. Although the psy-trance movement was thought of as indiscriminate, all-accepting and revolved around unity and communion, it did not, however, welcome passing tourists who wanted to attend a rave casually, and even domestic tourists from neighbouring cities (Saldanha, 2007, p.77). Ravers would price their parties in order to prevent these people from coming and they would wait until sunrise before beginning the event, because this was when Indian tourists would leave (ibid., p.3). This shows that to participate in a psy-trance rave you had to share the beliefs, lifestyle and psychedelic dress sense of the neo-tribe, otherwise your inclusion would not be favoured. This selective behaviour, which is not documented in a lot of literature on the psy-trance movement, exemplifies Thornton`s subcultural capital, coupled with the fact that ravers would move locations whenever it became abundant with tourists. Although Thornton`s work is aimed at 21st century club culture, it is relevant to Goa psy-trance due to the marginalisation of anybody they did not feel were at the parties to be transformed through a spiritual journey. Ravers saw their parties as serious events, so although they did not prevent people from coming due to a need to stay `hip` and `exclusive`, they prevented people through a protection of the spiritual nature of the raves; they wanted them to remain authentic, which is the underlying thesis behind Thornton`s subcultural capital.

Rave culture differed to other British youth subcultures that developed post-world war II in many ways, one being that it is one of the longest lasting and most dominant of youth subcultures to have ever existed in Britain. And despite its commercialisation, which is usually a killer of subculture, the scene continues to remain extremely popular and fashionable today (Finnegan, N.D). Rave has created many forms, meanings, movements and revivals and although it still continues to exist in a commercialised form, the intense ethos of the culture scarcely remains. This can be explained by the ideas of postmodernism briefly outlined in chapter one, whereby a solid identity has become lost in a world of mediated and endless identities. The post-subcultural theories discussed in chapter two can also explain this lack of authenticity and meaning behind youth culture and rave today as 21st century youth have access to myriad styles and previous cultures at the touch of a button. The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 can be held accountable for the abrupt changes in the rave scene, as it made free parties almost impossible to even set-up, thus raves either had to move to authorised club spaces or diminish altogether. Despite the loss of meaning that made rave such an interesting subculture, we have been able to see how collective and individual identity manifests in the phenomenon. These aspects still exist in rave today, but different theories, such as Thornton`s subcultural capital become more relevant. Postmodern day raves are more preoccupied with being `hip` and gaining status within society rather than embarking upon a spiritual journey to find yourself. The meaning of rave appears to have shifted along with the postmodern era and subsequent post-subcultural theories associated with subculture; many of which arose due to the contemporary version of rave: club culture.