It’s a common term set by ravers of the past that hardcore rave will never die and it seems to have tested time well over the past 30 years. Hardcore is a timestamp of 1991.

It was those loud bleeps and rolling bass lines that set the scene with a synchronized sound that created the futuristic genre of Hardcore Rave. From its routes of Chicago and New York House, the inevitable happened.

It was the baselines of the Roland TB-303 electronic bass synthesizer-sequencer that carved a way for the Hardcore Rave.

House tracks were being played in Ibiza back in the mid-’80s. A new sound called Acid House later became massive in the UK.

The Rave was later founded with groundbreaking electronica sounds and innovative DJs from all over the UK.

Acid House & Hardcore

Some people say the reference to “acid” may be a celebratory reference to psychedelic drugs in general, such as LSD. Another representation of a common dance floor drug was MDMA.

Acid House and hardcore became massive in the United Kingdom where Djs became producers and producers PAs. It was only obvious that a movement so powerful would grow to epic proportions.

As Acid House in clubs gradually became more vocal and sophisticated, the ravers demanded strange, euphoric sounds and a faster tempo. The new helium-style vocal effects were born.

“Close Your Eyes” by Acen delivered the helium effect and became a massive hardcore tune in the 90s.

With the hedonism and freedom of the 1967 Summer of Love in San Francisco, it was time for the UK to lead the way in 1988. The rave term generally refers to the summer of 1988.

Hardcore Rave Vinyl vs CDs

With a superb collection of hard-to-find underground rave classics, preserved on CD, it would cost a bomb to track all the tunes down on mint-quality vinyl!

Vinyl was and has always been a DJ’s preferred choice.  You’re tangibly connected to the music you love so much in a way that digital or CDs simply can’t recreate.

Vinyl created a tangible effect, and I mean we feel it so strongly that it seems almost unreal. That was the true feeling of a packed-out rave and accounted for some of the best UK raves accompanied by vinyl.

Vinyl is still around, however, as rave ages, the price of original vinyl goes up.

Most 1991 DJs who purchased vinyl every week have enough vinyl to last a whole genre. However, with so many variations of hardcore, it was sometimes hard to make a choice.

There were so many new budding DJs on the scene that record shops sold out of the new up-and-coming hardcore vinyl. It later became cheaper to create tunes with the rise of new computer software and self-made studios.

1991 – The Greatest Year for Hardcore

The rave scene in 1991 represents one of the most intelligent eras of EDM, furthermore, it created hardcore which revolutionised UK dance music. It brought people together. The same people who still love Raves 30+ years on.

It represents a futuristic genre even today whereas flyers had pictures of the universe, space, time and fantasy. The whole scene was surrounded by smiley faces on hats and sweatshirts.

This futuristic theme of raves in 1991 gave it a feeling of being in the middle of the universe with strobes and lasers twisting and lighting up the whole parameter of the rave.

Everyone danced trouble-free, meeting new ravers, and talking about crazy things that ended in a fascination of where it all comes from sometimes. Those conversations were unique and unrehearsed.

Back in 1991, the chillout rooms were a place to talk, reminisce and swap phone numbers. Dancefloors, arenas, warehouses and fields held the masses of ravers who partied until the next day.

The whole 1991 scene revolutionised dance music with some hardcore tunes making it into the more commercial UK charts. Although this wasn’t favoured it showed raves caught on in the UK.

1991 Hardcore Rave Revolution

A huge question hovers over the heads of us ravers of the past, present and future. Is it possible to relive the past by taking 1991 hardcore into the future and creating a new wave of special nights?

Rave On 1991 thinks it’s already a journey that has started with nights cropping up around the UK. Stu Allen’s memorial night RIP was such a success with the 30 years of Stu Allen being the highlight of the promotion.

Shelly’s Lasordome has just had its first packed night for a long time which shows there is a new wave of rave on its way. From our research ravers are buying new raving clobber and writing more on the internet.

This is our main reason for creating a community in the form of a Facebook group and this website to meet ravers of the past, present and future. Our international friends can take a walk through the 1991 scene and learn more.

Respect is Due to You Know Who!

Our respect goes out to all those who attended the rave scene back in 1991 to make it the best hardcore year in history. Without the following of ravers, we would never have had such an impact on the dance scene.

Yes, there were drugs, however, it was never going to be forever and it was a matter of time before the scene split and EDM broke off into many subgenres.

The Criminal Justice Bill ended the scene as it was. This a question that I ask all fellow ravers. How long do you think we could have kept it all up?

Huge respect goes out to the ravers, DJs, promoters and all those who made it possible. Respect to the DJs and the MCs that took us on a journey time and time again.

The Rave promoters in 1991 paved the way with venues that were unreal, those that held over 4000 ravers. Those nights were real and to relive them would be a dream come true. It’s happening already in fact which is an exciting time to be involved as we are.

If you’re reading this post and it brings back memories our job is done and our huge respect goes out to you for reading. The rise of our Rave On 1991 branding has just started.

Respect also goes out to the flyer designers who spent countless hours creating their art. It was always an exciting time after an event to see where the next rave journey would take us.

Are Ravers More Open-Minded?

Ravers tend to meet new friends easily, furthermore, those friends become a part of the entourage and stay tuned together for new nights.

The term Love, Peace and Unity is what the rave scene stands for even today. It’s the love for the whole rave scene.

It’s the love for the music, other ravers and favourite DJs, MCs & PAs that make it happen. Unity is important as a following, congregating and learning about new rave nights that make the scene so unique.

Ravers are indeed more open-minded. Raving is an integral part of our lives, as much as our identity which means the most to us. ’31 is the average age at which people in the UK hang up their dancing shoes.

The ravers that held on tight for the 1991 hardcore ride learned so much from a scene that generated so much for EDM afterwards. It’s a true saying that to understand 1991 hardcore you had to have been there.

On that note and to close this post it doesn’t matter if you are a new raver, an old raver or thinking about starting up. There is room for all in a scene that dominated EDM for a long time. A scene that is dominating social media across the world.