Neu-Rave: the new wave of guitars and glowsticks :: Wessex Scene Online

Neu-Rave: the new wave of guitars and glowsticks

24th April 2006
Clare Saxon

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Jun 06 - Tekno Vs Breaks - The Showdown!
Dec 06 - The Whitehouse Explosion
Dec 05 - Dance music shouldn’t be seen as drug music
Apr 06 - Fusion Sub Sessions – Gojira and the Biromaniacs
Apr 06 - Hard Dance Awards

More by Clare Saxon

May 07 - The F(r)action Family Party
Mar 07 - Punishment for Partying: Is the law killing free parties?
Mar 07 - Cassete Tapes Saved: Please Will
Dec 06 - The Whitehouse Explosion
Nov 06 - Nos: A Laughing Matter...?

As the psychedelic waves of crazy crazes come and go in popular culture or the darker more underground sub cultures, certain ideas plant themselves and evolve with increasing deadly speed. One of these at the moment seems to be the new style of indie music, as its ever looming presence engulfs all in its path, including a hefty slice of old school dance music.

At the forefront of this quite seemingly random mixture of old and new, guitars and glow sticks, prances The Klaxons who describe themselves as screamo happy hardcore pop. Now if that isn’t the most contradicting genre I’ve ever heard then call me emo. Although this glamorous combination might scare the more emotionally in tune of us away, I do think there is a glimmer of hope here for the unifying opportunities of cross dressing genres. The Klaxons perform as an early 90’s rave tribute, recreating old school acid house rave acts such as Altern-8 and Baby D and more modern techno labels like Cluster Records. Listening to ‘Gravity’s Rainbow’ they sound like all the other indie bands to me, but with more euphoric lyrics – not that that is a bad thing. But then what was I expecting, today you have to sound like NMEs lapdogs to get anywhere. ‘Atlantis to Interzone’ uses some more trance and acid house style sounds, and I think it works well with the punky vocals over the panic sirens.

Scotland’s S***disco are another act hoping to catch the wave before it crashes, and I think they sound nearer to what Neu-Rave suggests. You can hear the influence of Prodigy in their snappy drumming and grimy breakdowns, and this works with the stoner rock-esque voice of the singer of Joe Reeves in ‘Disco Blood’. But they still sound more old school New York punk than British rave.

New Young Pony Club are another outfit ready and willing to provide you with filthy electro grunge food stuffs, but who are they playing for?

As a typical dance music lover I find it hard to see why other ravers would listen to these bands just because they mention old acid house tunes and lyrics and are influenced by early rave. If it’s to really take off a huge fanbase is needed. Luckily these guys have already discovered MySpace and are using it to their full advantage in getting enough contacts to start touring with the right bands and advertising to the open minded new generations of hedonistic guitar lovers.

As I’ve heard more frequently over the past couple of years, techno and electronica is the rock and roll music of the 2000’s, with more passion and enthusiasm than all the long haired ‘alternative’ styles put together.

So is it time for the moaning eighties come backs to retire and the early nineties electronic revival to really bloom?

Only circular time and the short term memory of youth will tell.