Plague Raves
News & Features
Clubbing during a worldwide pandemic is happening despite it now being law not to socialise in groups of more than six.
If you don't have legal events then you are leaving it wide open for events to happen.
Some high-profile artists have criticised DJs and promoters who have organised events whilst Covid-19 is still preventing relaxation of social distancing. Society has been dipping their toe in with public social events since the months after the UK's full lockdown. It seems that the decision to go raving is polarising the dance scene with well-known artists speaking out against events - meanwhile there are reports of huge events taking place with headline DJs playing to crowds with seemingly no social distancing. Putting the legally organised events to one side, the South West of England has seen a rise of illegal events badly branded as 'plague raves'.
Once the clubs are back open, we'll shut down what we are doing.
Unlicensed events are problematic where organisers and attendees offer little to no social distancing measures. An organiser of illegal events has spoken out about what they are doing:
"Once the clubs are back open, we'll shut down what we are doing. I'm sorry, I don't think the virus is worth devastating a full cultural scene for. I'm not young, but if I were 18 this summer imagine how desperate you'd be now, that can't last indefinitely. They (the government) arn't bothered about losing clubs or raves... it suits them to get rid of us as they see it as problem. If you don't have legal events then you are leaving it wide open for events to happen."
The parallels between the early days of rave culture and now are difficult to overlook. When acid house first surfaced, the laws at the time meant venues had to shut in the afternoon and at 11pm which forced clubbers into unlicensed spaces. The difference is that acid house and unlicensed events were not being organised back then in the midst of a worldwide virus outbreak.
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