VR rave takes clubbers back to 1989's 'second summer of love'

Britain, 1989. Margaret Thatcher was prime minister, and the past decade was characterised by great economic growth - and great social hardships, including strikes, racial tension and football hooliganism.For many younger people, Britain felt like a nation divided. But suddenly, a new, hedonistic youth culture swept the nation. The acid house rave scene.And now, an experience at the Barbican can take you back to those hedonistic times.
Based around electronic club music born out of Chicago and fuelled by a new type of illegal synthetic drug - ecstasy - dancing at secret raves in fields and warehouses up and down the country became the way many young people broke through social and racial divides and stick two fingers up to the authorities.In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats is the brainchild of creator and director Darren Emerson, (no not that Darren Emerson, though being a Techno DJ and member of the band Underworld would be very convenient to this story) who wants to give would-be ravers as close to an authentic experience of that time as possible.As part of it, the VR ravers don their virtual reality goggles, vibrating vest, headphones and finger controllers to get virtually into an old red Peugeot and drive down the motorway and find the rave.
The choice of car is a deliberate bit of nostalgia for Mr Emerson."The red 205 was because my mate had a red 205, but it wasn't a GTi, which I like to remind him. "This experience has travelled all around the world but now we're here in London, and it really tells a universal story. "It's about going out with your friends, getting lost, taking a chance and finding your community - and when the sun comes up the next morning you feel completely changed."
Transported back to 1989 at the experience is DJ Erique Dial, one of the producers of Raze Break 4 Love, a seminal house music track of the late 1980s. Mr Dial arrived in Britain from the US just as the house scene was starting to hit. He never left. He started sampling sounds from blue movies in London's Soho - they were eventually used on the track by Vaughan Mason."I heard the track being played again and again on a pirate radio station," Mr Dial said, "and I was like, that's where those samples ended up".
Mr Dial's first rave experience was in 1987 at Clink St in east London."It was this derelict sort of place. The glow-in-the-dark stuff, sweat dripping down from the ceiling."You'd see these people who you would never talk to on the street. You would never be seen with these people, and there you are, you're hugging, you're dancing. A lot of people made friends for life."No one's fighting any more, they're just out raving."He still plays the music from those times at raves across London, where the clientele varies from people in their 50s or older, who experienced the scene first time round, and younger people discovering the music through their parents or through video games like Grand Theft Auto.
Mr Dial was joined on the virtual dancefloor by Richard Raindance, who organised London's first licenced rave in 1989.Mr Raindance comes from what he describes as an "English crime family" and says without the London rave scene he would probably have followed them."Raves were a complete mixture of young and old, everyone was there for the same reason, to just forget your problems," he said.
In 1989 the Raindance team hired coaches to transport thousands of revellers from the West End to continue partying in a field in Jenkins Lane, Barking, after the nightclubs closed at 02:00.Mr Raindance said these all-night outdoor raves "definitely hastened the all-night licences in clubland".He still puts on Raindance raves today, although nowadays many of them take place in the daytime."It's never stopped. "It's changed but it never went away. It's still a beautiful experience."
Leaving the Barbican event, was actor Ryan Hurst.Originally from Liverpool and now living in London, he used to attend raves as a young teen and said the VR experience was "like walking through a past life". "I was back to being a teenager again, tagging along as a fourteen-year old with older brothers, older sisters, waiting on the M62 at one of the service stations for that phone call."We used to live for the weekend. Everyone used to live for the weekend. It's all you would talk about all week at school, who was going where. You made friends for life."He's not the only one getting emotional. There is a chance for visitors to In Pursuit Of Repetitive Beats to leave a recorded message on the phone box at the entrance to the experience.Darren Emerson is saving them all, and he let me hear some of those left at the London experience." It completely took me back to 1989," said one message. "I feel quite emotional, I'm going to be sixty next week.""I feel blessed that I could re-live those emotions," said another, and "best times ever" said a third. "Still listening to acid house, still raving."

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

The Sun

an hour ago

• The Sun

‘Very strange' – Nick Kyrgios lets slip who BBC have replaced him with for Wimbledon and immediately fires dig at him

NICK KYRGIOS has revealed that world No108 Christopher Eubanks will replace him on the BBC's Wimbledon coverage this year. Kyrgios, 30, worked for the Beeb during last year's Championships, providing a fresh voice and perspective alongside usual suspects John McEnroe and Tim Henman. 5 5 Despite generally going down well with viewers, Kyrgios has not been signed up by the BBC for this year's tournament. The Aussie is set to miss his third Wimbledon in a row, having struggled with persistent knee and wrist injuries. Kyrgios' last match at the All-England Club was the 2022 final, in which he lost to Novak Djokovic in four sets. Eubanks' best run at Wimbledon came in the following year, when he stunned the likes of Cameron Norrie and Stefanos Tsitsipas before losing in five sets to Daniil Medvedev in the quarter-finals. On not being selected by the Beeb this year, Kyrgios told The Guardian: "It's unfortunate but it's probably their loss more than mine. "I understand they've got Chris Eubanks but he hasn't beaten the greatest of all time multiple times. "When someone's beaten Federer, Nadal, Murray and Djokovic and has incredible insights, it's very strange you wouldn't want that person adding knowledge to tennis fans." In addition to working for the BBC at Wimbledon, Kyrgios has also appeared on Tennis Channel's coverage of the sport in the United States. BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK 5 5 American Eubanks, meanwhile, has been juggling his playing career with plenty of punditry. The former world No29 has also worked on Tennis Channel, as well as ESPN and most recently TNT Sports during Roland Garros. Nick Kyrgios breaks silence on split with ex-girlfriend Costeen Hatzi as Wimbledon finalist reveals new look Kyrgios has not shut the door on working for the BBC again in future. The former Australian Open men's doubles champion said: "I'm sure our paths will cross again. I only ever want to add humour, some knowledge and some great atmosphere." Due to injuries, Kyrgios has played just six singles matches since October 2022. The crowd entertainer last played in Miami in March, losing to Karen Khachanov in the second round. Despite his uncertain status, having since pulled out of Roland Garros and Wimbledon, Kyrgios is determined to resume playing during the US hard court swing, culminating in a first appearance at Flushing Meadows in three years. He added: "Yes, for sure. I'm definitely playing the US swing and I'll take it one day at a time." 5

Telegraph

an hour ago

• Telegraph

Dua Lipa: she has everything a popstar needs

Dua Lipa has everything the modern popstar needs, except personality. On the plus side, she can sing with power, dance with skill, looks fantastic in whatever she wears and has presided over some of the most thrilling dance-pop hits of recent years. Her prodigious talents and work ethic have helped make the 29-year-old English-Albanian singer Britain's biggest (indeed only) new global pop export of this decade. So there was a justifiable air of triumph about the prospect of performing two shows at Wembley Stadium, in the city where she was born. It is a very big deal, and Lipa and her team have thrown everything at it: huge high-definition screens, catwalks, second stages, elevator platforms, pyrotechnics, confetti, streamers, fireworks and banging hit after banging hit – from One Kiss to Don't Start Now – that got 70,000 fans dancing delightedly. There is even, for the briefest of moments, something that passes for emotion, as the star seems close to tears when she says the magic word 'Wembley.' 'I have a lump in my throat,' Lipa declares, perma-grin briefly wobbling. 'I feel like I've been waiting my whole life for this moment.' Lipa is very keen on manifesting dreams, and this is pretty much the only thing she talked about, with gushing between song interjections about her career highs. It is a bit of a pet peeve, but when did audiences become responsible for fulfilling an entertainer's dreams and not the other way around? The problem for Lipa becomes apparent when you wonder what all this manifestation was really for – because if there is something missing from her slickly professional performance, it is the artist herself, who seems singularly unequipped for the kind of charismatic communication that really energises such mass entertainment events. An attempt to descend from the stage to talk to fans drained all the energy from the stadium. Lipa was projected onto the big screens, pouting for selfies. 'Are you having a good time?' she politely asked wild-eyed boys and girls pressed against the barriers, like a member of the Royal Family trying to communicate with the great unwashed. An underlying artificiality interfered with the show achieving emotional lift off. I'm sure Lipa's seven musicians are all accomplished players, but they are restricted to accompanying pre-recorded tracks with no room for self-expression; everything got engulfed in the huge digital bass sound that bombarded the stadium. A trumpet soloed artfully with no trumpeter on stage. Twelve dancers swirled around the star, whose vocals continued uninterrupted whether she was singing or not, as is the modern way. There was a brief murmur of excitement when she introduced one of her musical heroes for a duet, and a mass rumble of disappointment when it turned out to be Jay Kay from Jamiroquai (or 'who?' as the young woman in front of me asked her boyfriend). The old funk popstar sounded edgeless and adrift in a mushily bland rendition of Virtual Insanity. Stadium gigs are a challenge for entertainers, even with modern bells and whistles. It is not Lipa's fault that London has just been rocked by Beyoncé, amongst the best in the business at blending soul and scale with charismatic purpose. But for a modern star whose ambition is sky-high, Lipa is turning out to be an oddly old-fashioned showgirl. Dua Lipa plays Wembley Stadium again tonight, and Anfield Stadium, Liverpool on 24 and 25 June. Tickets:

Daily Mail​

an hour ago

• Daily Mail​

Cara Delevingne and Emma Corrin cut trendy figures as they join glam Amelia Dimoldenberg for The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs afterparty

Cara Delevingne and Emma Corrin cut casually stylish figures as they joined Amelia Dimoldenberg on Friday for The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs afterparty in London. The play, which is running at the Kiln Theatre until July 12, is a response to a perceived lack of representation lesbians receive in popular culture. Celebrating the show, Cara, who identifies as queer and pansexual, cut a trendy figure a pair of black baggy cargo trousers, a cropped white shirt and trainers. The model, 32, accessorised her outfit with a camouflage print baseball cap and blue rucksack and appeared to be in excellent spirits. She was joined at the star-studded afterparty by fellow actor Emma Corrin, 29, who is queer and non-binary. Emma, who uses they/them pronouns, opted for an equally casual fit, donning a red vest top with an intricate horse design and a pair of blue jeans. They accessorised with a simple black shoulder bag and a thin necklace. Amelia, 31, was also in attendance and she cut a glamorous figure in a long black skirt, patterned black T-shirt and studded ballet pumps. The Chicken Shop Date host toted her essentials in a simple black shoulder bag as she posed for the cameras. Elsewhere, model Adwoa Aboah, 32, kept it low-key in a plaid T-shirt and black shorts, which she teamed with a leopard-print bag. Olivier-nominated theatre director Hannah Hauer-King cut a stylish figure in a white top and trousers as she posed alongside Cara. Opening up about her sexuality, Cara recently admitted that she struggled with internalised shame because of the influence of preceeding generations. She said that, growing up, she was given the impression that her parents would feel like they had 'done something wrong' if they had a gay child. Cara told The Times: 'It's a generational thing. I don't think it was their fault at all. The model, 32, accessorised her outfit with a camouflage print baseball cap and blue rucksack and appeared to be in excellent spirits Model Adwoa Aboah, 32, kept it low-key in a plaid T-shirt and black shorts, which she teamed with a leopard-print bag 'It's just how it was. I think a lot of parents thought, "Oh, if I have a gay child, I have done something wrong."' Cara has had high-profile relationships with women in the past, having dated musician St Vincent and actor Ashley Benson. Speaking on the Make it Reign podcast with Josh Smith in 2021, she said Pride Month, which takes place every June, should be about 'choosing love'. She said: 'That's what I think Pride needs to be about. It's just love, love for your partner, love for your neighbour, love for yourself more importantly, and loving people you don't know either. 'Like, it just doesn't have to be something you talk about where it's just about a relationship. 'It can just be about a stranger, you know, having empathy and compassion for all people.'