Rave is more of an event than a genre of music. Raves were underground parties where acid house and hardcore records were played and large quantities of drugs -- particularly ecstasy -- were consumed. Most of the music played at raves had a psychedelic quality, even before drugs became a major element of the scene. (read more)

Rave is more of an event than a genre of music. Raves were underground parties where acid house and hardcore records were played and large quantities of drugs -- particularly ecstasy -- were consumed. Most of the music played at raves had a psychedelic quality, even before drugs became a major element of the scene. DJs played at the raves, mixing stacks of house and techno singles; the DJs, not the recording artists themselves, became the most recognizable names in the scene. Raves were primarily an English phenomenon during the late '80s and early '90s. They were conducted in large venues, particularly abandoned warehouses and open fields. Eventually, the British government became concerned that raves were a dangerous, antisocial phenomenon that had to be shut down, but the parties never disappeared, especially since word of the events were usually passed through word of mouth and handmade fliers. In the States, raves began to make some inroads in the early '90s, but they never gained a large audience, even by underground standards. Throughout the '90s, bands that were directly influenced by rave culture -- particularly "baggy" bands like the Stone Roses, Happy Mondays, and Charlatans; Britpop acts like Pulp and Oasis; and techno artists like the Prodigy -- made their way into the mainstream, and the culture continued to capture the attention of British youth into the late '90s.(collapse)