‘ACID HOUSE HERALDED A NEW ERA. IT WAS ALL ABOUT GIVING IT A GO AND NOT GIVING A SHIT.’[1]
The years that followed saw a popularisation of clubbing, illegal raves, acid house and techno, travelling sound systems, festivals, anti-capitalist living and new social behaviours that police had no idea how to deal with, which all eventually accumulated over the years to see the UK's biggest illegal rave held at Castlemorton Common in 1992[2].
Ultimately acid house's popularity and the essence of freedom became it's own demise, in 1994 as a response to Castlemorton Common, the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 was enacted which outlawed raves[3]. Following this, young people took to the streets of London in order to protest their right to party.[4]
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[1] Bill Brewster, Sweet Harmony: Rave Today. (2019). London: Sweet Harmony Productions.
[2] Jimmy Cauty, 2018 as cited in Sweet Harmony: Rave Today. (2019). London: Sweet Harmony Productions.
[3] The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act.Section 63-(1)(b).
[4] Mullin, F. (2019). How UK Ravers Raged Against the Ban. [online] Vice. Available at: https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/vd8gbj/anti-rave-act-protests-20th-anniversary-204.