An acid house party was a type of illegal

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature f ...

typically staged in abandoned

warehouse A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the outskirts of cities ...

s between 1987 and 1989. Parties played

acid house Acid house (also simply known as just "acid") is a subgenre of house music developed around the mid-1980s by DJs from Chicago. The style is defined primarily by the squelching sounds and basslines of the Roland TB-303 electronic bass synthesiz ...

and

acid techno Acid techno, sometimes known generally as "acid", is a genre of techno that was derived from acid house and developed in Europe in the late 1980s to early 1990s. It saw younger artists apply the "squelching" synthesizer sound of Chicago acid hou ...

music, electronic music genres with a distinct sound from the use of the Roland TB-303 synthesizer. The origin of the term acid house party is disputed coming either from the 1987 song " Acid Trax" by Phuture, or the consumption of

MDMA 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), commonly seen in Tablet (pharmacy), tablet form (ecstasy) and crystal form (molly or mandy), is a potent empathogen–entactogen with stimulant properties primarily used for Recreational dru ...

and LSD that were common at the parties.

Setting

Events and parties were often held in empty warehouses across the UK and were essentially illegal. Some of the most famous party promoters included

Energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...

, Biology, Genesis'88, Sunrise, and Weekend World. Emerging from Danny Rampling's London club

Shoom Shoom was a weekly all-nighter dance music event held at four nightclubs in London, England, between September 1987 and early 1990. It is widely credited with initiating the acid house movement in the UK. Shoom was founded by Danny Rampling, who ...

in late 1987, parties grew in northern cities like

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

(the Madchester scene) where warehouses had closed throughout the 1970s, and up to 10,000 people attended parties in smaller places such as Blackburn. Vague flyers around towns advertised events and information travelled by word of mouth (as well as the newly popular mobile pager) between clubbers who were obliged to party incognito. For most promoters, keeping entry cheap was a political issue - many of the early parties cost just £1 to enter and prices rarely crept above £3. If police turned up to shut down a party, some would open the doors and let everyone in for free. Glaswegian DJ Tommy Smith encapsulated the scene's defiant spirit on Granada TV show 'Up Front', hosted by

Tony Wilson Anthony Howard Wilson (20 February 1950 – 10 August 2007) was a British record label owner, radio and television presenter, nightclub manager, impresario and a journalist for Granada Television, the BBC and Channel 4. As a co-founder of ...

, during a debate with disgruntled Blackburn residents and Conservative MP

Ken Hind Kenneth Harvand Hind, CBE (born 15 September 1949) was the Conservative Member of Parliament for West Lancashire from 1983 until 1992, when he was defeated by Labour's Colin Pickthall. In May 1997, he was a candidate in the general election f ...

. Smith declared that he was not on drugs or alcohol, simply “high on hope” and the phrase entered the clubbers' lexicon and was widely used to market club nights.

Music

The music was characterised by the "squelching" bass produced by the Roland TB-303 and loud repetitive beats. It originated in Chicago and took on new qualities when it came to Europe. Songs from the time period include "

French Kiss A French kiss, also known as cataglottism or a tongue kiss, is an amorous kiss in which the participants' tongues extend to touch each other's lips or tongue. A kiss with the tongue stimulates the partner's lips, tongue and mouth, which are sens ...

" by

Lil Louis Marvin Burns (born May 13, 1962), known by his stage name Li'l Louis (sometimes expanded to Li'l Louis & the World and Li'l Louis & the Party), is a Chicago-born house-music producer and DJ .Larkin, Colin (1999) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Da ...

"On & On" by

Jesse Saunders Jesse Saunders (born March 10, 1962) is an American house music artist, DJ, record producer, film producer, and entrepreneur. His 1984 single, "On & On", co-written with Vince Lawrence, was the first record with a house DJ as the artist that ...

, "

Mystery of Love "Mystery of Love" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens and produced by Thomas Bartlett. It was self-released digitally, under license to Madison Gate Records and Sony Classical, on 1 December 2017. Luca ...

" by

Fingers Inc. Fingers Inc. was an American music group from Chicago, Illinois. It consisted of producer Larry Heard and vocalists Robert Owens and Ron Wilson. AllMusic called it the "top early Chicago house group". History Fingers Inc. was formed in Chicago, I ...

, " Love Can't Turn Around" by

Farley "Jackmaster" Funk Farley "Jackmaster" Funk (born Farley Keith Williams; January 25, 1962) is an American musician, DJ and record producer of Chicago house and acid house music. He is notable for writing and producing a number of highly influential tracks in the ...

(featuring Darryl Pandy), " Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)" by Soul II Soul, "I've Lost Control" by Sleezy D, and "Your Only Friend" by Phuture. The catchphrase of partygoers was ‘Can you feel it?’, alluding to the

Royal House A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in repu ...

cry from " Can you Party?".

Decline

The prevalence of drug use at these parties was in contrast to Thatcherism at the time, sparking moral panic. Police raided parties, such as a 10,000-strong rave in Nelson in 1990. In response, the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...

passed the

Entertainments (Increased Penalties) Act 1990 Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousan ...

which brought the decline of acid house parties. As a result, the time period is often referred to as the Second Summer of Love. Eventually, acid house parties morphed into the

rave A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mus ...

scene.''Class of 88 - The True Acid House Experience'', Wayne Anthony, Virgin. The book may also be downloaded from th
- author's e-group

References

External links

{{Electronic music festival 1987 establishments in England 1990 disestablishments in England

Party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature f ...

DIY culture Parties Rave

Setting

Music

Decline

See also

Further reading

References

External links