Raves and the Laws Aimed at Controlling Them

Résumé 0

In both the UK and in France, the rise of techno music was been linked with the consumption of ecstasy and perceived negatively. Techno events were forcibly cancelled, and premises closed down by police. This led to a new type of techno concert: the Rave. Raves were also rapidly targeted and banned. Techno artists and technicians responded by forming Collectives known as Sound Systems. These Sound Systems organised Free Parties – free and illegal raves – within which anarchist ideology developed, paving the way for a youth cultural movement. In France, the development of this movement in the second half of the 90s forced the State to respond: initially by passing repressive laws and then, when faced with the difficulty of enforcing such laws, by negotiating with the Collectives so that Free Parties could continue to be held but with minimal public disorder.