Zombie Rave

So for those of you NOT distracted by the discovery of Our Lady of the Underpass down there by Harold's-Under-the-Bulldozer, you might have noticed the story in the news about the kid in Seattle who went mental and killed 6 other kids and then himself.

You might have ALSO read that the kids were all at an afterhours gathering after they had all attended some rave in Seattle.

This makes me have to talk.

For adults, "rave" is a dirty word. It brings to mind Dateline-esque horror stories about the abuses of Ecstasy and having your kids stay out 'til the wee hours of the morning doing all kinds of nasty stuff. And see, now, thanks to the Seattle story, we now have the added stigma that People Who Go To Raves Can Get Shot.

For kids, "rave" is a played-out word. Real raves died ages ago. The fad is dead. Nobody throws illegal all-night dance parties any more, and if they DID, hardly anybody would go. What's left is sort of a commercialized version of the classic "rave," usually held at clubs or concert venues with appropriate licensing. Often with paid, uniformed security and sometimes even a police presence. The only time you hear the word "rave" associated with one of these parties is if a promoter is (a) being corny, or (b) trying to capitalize on the rebellious stigma of a past phenomenon.

Why am I getting all riled up over raves? Because, prior to my cushy little job at the Dispatch/Argus, I spent 4 years of my life as a rave promoter in the Quad Cities area.

"But, but, BUT..." you're saying, "raves are baaaad, m'kay?"

No, they weren't. Still aren't (though there hasn't been a proper one in the Quad Cities in years.) If you think that raves are evil, bad places where evil, bad people hang out, you've seen one too many episodes of Dateline NBC.

If your kid has ever expressed any interest in rave culture, that means that your kid is into electronic dance music. You'll know it by the unending dance beats coming out of his or her bedrooms. It might be house, it might be techno, it might be trance, it might be breaks... and its pulsating rhythms may just keep you up all night routinely.

The problem is: If you're a kid into that kind of music... ESPECIALLY if you're in an area like we are, there's simply NOWHERE to go to enjoy it. You won't hear that kind of music at teen dances - it's just not sock hop material. You can't hear it on the radio (unless you've got Sirius.)

That's where rave culture comes in. At raves, DJ's spin electronic dance music all night long, from dusk til whenever the party ends. This is DJ culture -- DJ's fly into these parties from all over the world, and if it's your thing, big-name DJ's command the same kind of respect and fan worship that bands and movie stars get. (Think I'm kidding? We flew DJ's in from the east coast who spun records for the low, low fee of $1000 PER HOUR.)

At raves and like-minded gatherings, kids get together on the dance floor and just share their love for the music. Whether it's dancing like loons, hanging out in the corners, socializing, chatting, checking out the DJ... they're just there for the fun of it all.

The mentality of kids at raves is like nothing you've ever seen. Let me put it to you this way. In our day, we probably threw around 100 parties. Thousands and thousands of kids. AND NOT ONE FIGHT. IN 4 YEARS. That's a better average than ANY dance club or bar you might happen to frequent.

I've seen strangers become best friends at these parties. Race, religion, sex... it doesn't matter. Everyone's just ACCEPTED at these events. I work at a "proper" nightclub on the weekends now, playing the usual mix of Top 40/hip-hop. And I've seen people get RIDICULED in my club by others for looking different, dancing weird, what-have-you. At a rave, you could be THE WORST DANCER ON EARTH, and noone cares. It's just a melting pot for kids of all types whose ONLY common ground is their shared love for the music.

I WILL be a realist, though. Largely thanks to programs like 20/20, Dateline, etc., raves in the 90's became synonymous with drug abuse (primarily the "club drug" ecstasy.) Am I going to sit here and tell you that noone was on drugs at one of our parties? Of course not. I'm sure it happened from time to time, despite our diligent efforts to curb it (we frisked every kid who walked in the door, we confiscated any illicit substances we found, and we tossed anyone caught.)

But it wasn't prevalent. There was no peer pressure. No one ever offered me ecstasy in all my days. I've never even SEEN an ecstasy pill with my own eyes. The VAST majority of the kids at our parties were there for the music and the socializing and NOTHING else.

You're just going to have to trust me on that one. Just like you should trust your kids not to be stupid. I'd love to show you guys videos from our parties - you'll see that it's just a bunch of fun. Nothing sinister and nothing illegal. Nothing you wouldn't lose respect for your kids over.

The reason I decided to rant tonight? Because I can already imagine the producers of Dateline and 20/20, sitting around SALIVATING over the prospect of another "raves are evil" piece. Back when we were throwing events, those stories would run and cause us to roll our eyes.

If anything, the slanted news reports INCREASED our crowds, because, let's face it, kids want to go somewhere dangerous and cool. And when a concerned parent would show up? We'd welcome them inside so they can see "the dangers of raves" for themselves... not once did we get a negative comment.

At the VERY worst, your kids might have ringing in the ears the next day -- the music is LOUD, I won't kid ya there -- but that's honestly the worst of it.

So parents of the Quad Cities, don't flip out over this idiot in Seattle. The kid was toting around a truck full 'o guns -- the victims could have been in a McDonalds, wandering down the street, or doing homework in a library. They were just tragic victims of a crazy killer, and he just happened to pick a rave afterhours to go horribly insane.

If your kids are into club music, let them be. It's harmless and fun to dance to. Just be a good parent and make sure they're not hanging out with stupid kids doing stupid stuff... and they'll be just fine.

End Rant.