If you think about it, raves are user-centred experiences. They bring people together to be immersed in music, light and movement.

Creativity thrives where connection meets freedom of expression. The rave scene’s foundations – always reaching far beyond the dancefloor – are built on the same principles.

The strong sense of community and radical self-expression associated with rave has had wider influences on the worlds of fashion, art and music – as well as marketing and graphic design.

UK rave is rooted in electronic music. It’s characterised by gatherings in underground, industrial or outdoor spaces and music with fast tempos, strong basslines and repetitive, synthesised melodies. There are multiple sub-genres, all largely designed for prolonged dancing, with a resulting euphoric emotional release.

The hypnotic repetitive beats of electronic dance music, combined with kaleidoscopic lights and the physical and psychological effects of dancing for several hours in a crowd, are known to bring on transient hypofrontality – a phenomenon associated with the flow state that is linked to creative breakthroughs.

The roots of rave

The strong sense of community and radical self-expression associated with rave has had wider influences on the worlds of fashion, art and music. Emerging in the late 80s and early 90s in the UK, rave culture originated in the 70s and 80s warehouses of Detroit and Chicago.

The story of the rave scene, and of electronic music in general, is intertwined with the histories of Black and queer communities. Often ostracised from mainstream entertainment venues, they created new, underground spaces that celebrated inclusion and self-expression. In Chicago, the birth of house music is attributed to artists such as Frankie Knuckles, who played at a now-iconic venue called The Warehouse, a hub for gay Black and Latino men.

Merging disco with elements of funk, hip-hop and electro-pop, Frankie Knuckles and his contemporaries fostered the birth of a genre now known as Chicago house, which has given rise to today’s house music. If you think about it, raves are user-centred experiences. Their whole purpose is to bring people together so they can be immersed in music, light and movement. But, like any user experience project, a good rave requires planning.

If you invite the people, and they like the DJ line-up, they’ll come. That’s the basic bit. However, the concepts of flow, space and timing are also important to any live music event. Are the stages in the right order? Have you put the headliner on at the right time? Are there places for people to sit and chill when it all becomes a bit much? Get the user journey wrong and people may not come to your next event. Get it right, and you could have lifelong fans.

Cover story

There’s always been a golden thread running through the rave scene and graphic design – from the birth of acid house to the rebellious free party scene, right through to the super clubs of the digital age. Underground collectives such as Spiral Tribe and Nottingham’s DiY Sound System created logos that became synonymous with the rebellion and utopian ideals that the groups themselves were founded on.

The smiley face icon – now better known as an emoji – was first popularised as part of the acid house scene. Designs for music events and brands have gone on to inform broader trends in graphic design, with their rich heritage of striking, unusual and do-it-yourself flyers and posters. Iconic party and nightclub brands such as Manchester’s Haçienda, with its distinctive black and acidic yellow colourway and industrial aesthetic, have influenced many brands since – and continue to do so today.

The cherries of Pacha nightclub, originating in Ibiza, are recognised throughout the world, even by those who’d never dream of setting foot on Ibiza, let alone in a nightclub. Many DJs and producers began their working lives as graphic designers, having the added benefit of being able to design their own marketing material and record covers. Some of the best-known examples are Franck Rivoire (AKA Danger) and Chuck D of Public Enemy, as well as the lesser-known but highly respected Glasgow-based disco aficionado Al Kent, who creates distinctive designs for his music releases. The design of the record cover becomes as covetable as the record itself, and the pre-release editions often sell out in hours.

The eminent DJ Goldie was formerly a graffiti artist, as was Robert Del Naja, also known as 3D, of Massive Attack.

Rachel Imms

Create. Meet. Rave. Repeat. ▶︎

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