Are the roots of rave culture getting lost?

It’s been around 40 years since the birth of modern day dance music culture. In that time it has been through a myriad of iterations and shifts. Today, the pervasive influence of social media seems to be taking it away from its roots.

New generations often view it differently, with less appreciation for the past.
While we can’t (and shouldn’t) stay in the past, there are some things that should be upheld.

Here’s how the roots of rave culture are being lost…

MORE FOCUS ON LOOKING COOL
There’s a difference between wanting to look good, and wanting to look cool. Having standards is totally fine. But when you’re dressing, or behaving, for validation from others
or “cool points”, something is amiss. In fact, a lot of the outliers at the earliest events were trying to get away from the “cool kids”.

RAVES ARE NOW SOCIAL CURRENCY
The notion of filming yourself in a club or at a festival to elevate your social status is
the antithesis of the culture’s roots. It’s a modern phenomenon that commodifies and cheapens what this whole thing is about. Being present and in the moment is what it’s about.

INCLUSIVITY IS BEING ERODED
What used to be a refuge for people who were different – lower economic class and/or marginalised – has started to become inaccessible due mostly to prices going up and up. When raves are only affordable for wealthy people, inclusivity goes out of the window.

IT’S BECOME BIG BUSINESS
While money has always been there, and nothing would work without some kind of business model in place, big business muscling in has eroded some of the culture’s core values.
Just look at the murky connections and monopolisation that has been occurring through corporate buyouts of clubs and festivals in recent years.

Rebalance

Ingredients (per 1 capsule)
Quantity
RDA %
Curcumin
190mg
n/a
5-HTP (from Griffonia Seed Extract)
100mg
n/a
Vitamin B3 (Nicotinamide)
50mg
313%
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxal Phosphate)
10mg
714%
Black Pepper Extract
2.5mg
n/a
Vitamin D3 (Cholecalciferol)
25mcg
500%

Reboot

Ingredients (per 1 capsule)
Quantity
RDA %
L-Tyrosine
400mg
n/a
Vitamin B5 (Calcium Pantothenate)
150mg
2,500%
Folate (5-Methyletetrahydrate)
400mcg
200%
Vitamin B12 (Methylcobalamin)
400mcg
16,000%
Iodine (Potassium Iodide)
100mcg
67%

Release

Ingredients (per 1 capsule)
Quantity
RDA %
Magnesium Bisglycinate
112mg
313%
American Ginseng Extract (4:1)
100mg eq.
n/a
Ashwagandha Root Extract (10:1)
100mg eq.
n/a
Rhodiola Rosea Extract (15:1)
50mg eq.
n/a

Restore

Ingredients (per 2 capsules)
Quantity
RDA %
Vitamin C (Sodium Ascorbate)
500mg
625%
Alpha Lipoic Acid
200mg
n/a
N-Acetyl L-Cysteine
200mg
n/a
L-Taurine
100mg
n/a
Vitamin E (D-Alpha Tocopherol Succinate)
50mg
417%
Artichoke Extract (5:1)
50mg eq.
n/a
Zinc (Picolinate)
10mg
100%
Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin Phosphate)
7mg
500%
Beta-Carotene
3.75mg
n/a
Manganese Bisglycinate
3mg
150%
Biotin
500mcg
1,000%
Selenium (as L-Selenomethionine)
10mcg
182%