What is a Rave? The Complete Guide to Electronic Dance Music Events and Culture

What is a rave? It is a dance party built around electronic dance music. DJs play long, continuous sets while the crowd dances.

Raves run in warehouses, in clubs, and across huge multi-stage festival fields. Wherever they happen, the music, the lighting and the crowd are what make the night.

What Does Rave Mean?

"Rave" names both the event and the culture around it. At the event, people dance to electronic music played by DJs, in a warehouse, a club or any other space. For us, it is also about the feel: DJs and producers playing extended sets in an immersive setting.

The rave meaning most people land on has three parts:

• Electronic music
• A DJ working the floor
• A crowd that came to dance

A rave party means the same thing. The word covers anything from a small warehouse room to a stadium-sized production.

What Are the Different Types of Raves?

Raves don't follow one format. They run as warehouse parties, club nights, house parties, squat parties, outdoor country events and large multi-DJ festivals.

When Did Rave Culture Start?

Rave culture grew out of acid house in the mid to late 1980s. The sound came out of Chicago and spread to the UK, where warehouse parties carried it.

The word arrived slightly later. Genesis P-Orridge is often credited with helping popularize the term “rave party”. In a television interview in late 1989, P-Orridge used it to describe acid house parties.

Earlier warehouse parties reportedly drew around 4,000 people. By the 1990s, larger mainstream rave events attracted crowds of up to 25,000.

People tell the origin story in different ways, and the exact dates shift depending on who you ask. Everyone agrees on the basics: acid house, warehouse parties and the late 1980s.

What Is Rave Music?

Rave music is electronic dance music, played by a DJ as a continuous set rather than as separate songs. These are the genres you will hear most often:

• House
• Techno
• Drum and bass
• Trance
• Dubstep
• Hardstyle

Each one has its own tempo and its own crowd. Most large events run several stages, so more than one genre plays at once. If you are new, choose your stage by genre rather than by headliner name.

What Happens at a Rave?

Doors open, an early DJ warms up the room, and the sets build as the night goes on. A headliner usually closes. The extended sets are longer than anything you get at a concert.

Lighting, lasers and visuals are built around the music rather than bolted onto it. At a festival you move between stages all night.

Rave Slang and Terms to Know

Raves come with their own vocabulary. Here are the terms worth knowing before your first rave.

What Does PLUR Mean?

PLUR stands for Peace, Love, Unity, Respect. It is the closest thing rave culture has to a code of conduct.

The phrase is credited to DJ Frankie Bones and his Storm Rave parties in Brooklyn in the early 1990s. "Respect" was added later, championed by Laura La Gassa. People tell different versions of how it started, so don't take any one story as the final word.

On the floor, it comes down to looking after the people standing next to you. Kandi trading grew out of the same idea.

How to Dance at a Rave

There is no correct way to dance at a rave, and nobody is scoring you. Most people improvise: find the tempo, move your feet, and let the rest follow. Comfortable shoes do more for your dancing than any technique will.

What Is the Rave Dance Called?

Of the rave dances that have a name, the Melbourne Shuffle is the best known. It developed in Melbourne, Australia in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Dancers build it from the T-step and running man moves, improvising on the spot to electronic dance music.

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What to Wear to a Rave

There is no dress code. Wear something comfortable and breathable that you are happy to be seen in all night.

UV-reactive prints make sense at big shows: productions run blacklight rigs, and ordinary fabrics go dark under one. Our blacklight ready range is made for that lighting. You will find it across our men's rave clothing and women's rave clothing lines.

Our rave outfits guide breaks down what to wear for each event type. The first-timer packing guide covers shoes and layers. There are also outfit ideas for women if you want somewhere to start.

What to Bring to Your First Rave

Keep it small and hands free. This is our first rave checklist:

• ID
• Cash
• A phone charger
• Earplugs
• Basic first aid
• Water
• A plan for getting home afterwards

Earplugs are the easiest item to leave behind and the one most worth carrying. Rave sound systems are loud, and you feel the bass as much as you hear it. Anything else you need is in our rave essentials collection.

Rave Etiquette Rules for First-Timers

Rave etiquette comes down to a few common-sense rules:

• Respect personal space, even on a packed floor.
• Follow the venue's rules rather than arguing about them.
• If someone near you looks unwell, help them or find staff.

That is PLUR in practice, and it is why the scene has a reputation for being welcoming.

Final Thoughts

A rave is simpler than its reputation suggests. At heart it is electronic music, a DJ playing long sets, and a crowd that came to dance.

Formats and genres change, and the production gets bigger every year. Still, the answer to "what is a rave?" has not really changed since the warehouse days. Show up in comfortable clothes, look after the people around you, and enjoy the night.

Ready for your first rave? Start with the outfit.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What happens at a rave party?

DJs play extended electronic sets while the crowd dances, usually for several hours. Lighting, lasers and visuals run in time with the music. At bigger events you move between stages and genres through the night.

Are raves illegal in the US?

A rave is a music event, so there is nothing illegal about going to one. The reputation comes from early parties held in squats and unlicensed spaces. Modern festivals and club nights are ticketed events run at licensed venues.

What is the difference between a rave and a concert?

A concert is built around a band or artist performing songs. A rave is built around DJs mixing continuous sets, often for hours at a time. Raves also lean much harder on lighting, lasers and visual production, and dancing is the main activity rather than watching.

How long does wook flu last?

Wook flu has no clinical definition, so there is no fixed answer. Most people describe a few rough days after a multi-day festival. They usually put it down to dust, poor sleep and physical exertion.

Rest, drink water, eat properly, and see a doctor if it feels like more than tiredness.

What should you wear to your first rave?

Something breathable you can dance in for hours, plus shoes you have already broken in. Add a warm layer if the event runs outdoors after dark.

Bright or UV-reactive prints work well under blacklight rigs. Otherwise, wear whatever you can move in comfortably.

What is rave culture?

Rave culture is the shared set of habits around the events: the music, the fashion, the dancing and PLUR. It grew out of the late 1980s warehouse scene. It still runs on a simple idea: turn up, dance, and treat the people around you well.