Look Back At The Birth Of Acid House

Acid House was a defining moment when everything changed – music, youth culture, us. It announced the arrival of the dance music movement and led to the birth of clubbing as we know it. On the Guardian blog, Jim Butler looks at the birth of a movement and compares it with the ‘rave revival’ of today:

In September 1987 four British lads went to the Balearic island of Ibiza to celebrate one of their number’s birthday. However, rather than indulge in the familiar trappings that San Antonio had to offer – the chip shop and the boozer – Paul Oakenfold, Johnny Walker, Nicky Holloway and Danny Rampling sampled the bountiful delights of the island’s more exotic side.

At the island’s celebrated Amnesia club, the four took a new drug called ecstasy for the first time. Its euphoric properties chimed with the playful strand of dance music that the DJ, Alfredo, was spinning. Unknown to Oakenfold and co, they had stumbled upon the ingredients that they turned into acid house, the UK’s last great youth subculture and year zero musical movement.

Upon their return to the UK the four revellers were determined to keep the party going. Oakenfold introduced the new music to his club The Project in Streatham, before opening Spektrum at Heaven; Rampling meanwhile began Shoom in a fitness centre near Southwark Bridge and Holloway went onto open Trip at the Astoria. By the following summer, acid house dominated clubland.

In stark contrast to the dour music scene of the time, acid house was colourful, bold and fresh. A fascinating combination of Detroit techno, New York disco, Chicago house , European electro-pop and whatever other curious accoutrements it happened to pick up along the way, it was a complete break with what had gone before.

Guardian Unlimited: Arts blog – music: From Ibiza to Interzone: acid house 20 years on