We are the generation that love to thrift, wear old clothes to feel like we’re in another era. We like to take pictures on cameras that make them look older or use the right filter for the same effect, we even download apps on our smartphones to make a video black and white and glitchy. We are a generation that is hopeful for the future, but we seem to have this yearning for the past festered in a disdain for the time we are living in. There exists a word in Portuguese; “Saudade” which has no English equivalent and is described by Aubrey Bell as a “vague and constant desire for something that does not and probably cannot exist, for something other than the present”. Let’s look at the climate we are in now, where there is a faint light at the end of this isolated tunnel that we are all in, we have no idea when we will come out of it and how the world will be. People toss and turn between being hopeful and anxious of how they can protect themselves and others. It’s not a secret that during the time of Coronavirus there has been a surge in illegal raves across the country. There is a lot of backlash surrounding them because of the spread of the virus that takes place in large gatherings and the unfortunate events that took place at the large rave held in Manchester in June of 2020. But let’s compare to the Second Summer of Love when raves and Acid House were flooding through the country and infecting the population with a new way of living and experiencing music, experiencing love for the people around them. The political climate was not a positive one what with Thatcher in No. 10, the miners strikes and the unemployment that was not uncommon. The media described these rave-goers as dangerous drug idled kids with no ambition, yet they were generating a space where football hooligans supporting opposing teams once known to brawl in the stands of whatever stadium were now hugging and swaying together in the middle of the dancefloor. It’s a place where all are welcome. Shoot back to now, where contemporary art is seeing a surge in themes of rave culture, the late 80’s and early 90’s is coming back. In a time where people are so quick to blame on “the other”, the President of the United States referring to COVID-19 as “The China Virus”. The UK government presenting a campaign for creatives to retrain and pursue other careers. The young and hopeful have once again come together to generate a space of peace love and unity. In a time where not everyone necessarily trusts the government and when a cycle of lockdown seems imminent. The detrimental surges in issues of mental health mean people are letting themselves enjoy moments where they lose themselves in the music for just one more night and going back to the raves. Of course attending an illegal rave with potentially thousands of strangers in the middle of a pandemic is no small risk but some see it as a statement “fuck you” to the restrictions and lack of support from the government. I have a feeling that I missed out on that period, I miss it and I was never there, I long for those memories that DJ’s such as Paul Oakenfold, Terry Farley, Carl Cox and many more describe but it seems that because we are the generation that is taking the brunt of decisions of the generations above us not only with COVID but with the seemingly impending doom of the climate crisis and Brexit. We will pull through, but we will make a space where we can show each other we love one another, love the music, love the past and build our new future.
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