This site is meant to honor the Club Kids, but also highlight the Ravers and Nu Ravers. Life would be horribly normal without them. If you are looking to make fun of people that is not what we are about. The kids on this site are cooler than most people will ever be.
Who started the Club Kid scene? I believe it was David Bowie. Fans around the world emulated his different looks and mannerisms. But it was the London Blitz Kids of the early 80’s that took things to a whole new level. Their outrageous style of clothes and make-up created a whole new scene. They were the first Club Kids. The most famous Blitz Kid was Boy George. But even he started out emulating Bowie. Near the end of the Blitz Kids run the fabulous Leigh Bowery moved to London to be a part of the scene. Leigh’s wild fashion ideas helped raise the Club Kid look to new highs and out of this world levels.
Stories of the Blitz Kids and their antics spread through the underground. In the late 80’s Michael Alig and James St. James adopted and expanded the Blitz Kids style. The New York Club Kids were born. They soon had a following of misfits and outcasts. The Club Kids outrageous costumes were only matched by their excessive drug use. Michael Alig’s notability and influence grew to the point where he was on the payroll of several clubs for just showing up with his entourage. When they wanted to add a little variety to their night-life, Michael and James began holding illegal Club Kid parties in various public places including a donut shop, the old high line tracks, and the New York subway. They were the ones that invented the flash mob.
During this same time in Chicago, Zander Mander was a driving force in Chicago’s Club Kid scene. Thirty years later he is still going strong and is currently touring the US.
Near the end of the 80’s Techno and Acid House caught on in Manchester and later in London. Warehouse parties started to emerge that attracted tens of thousands of people. These Acid House parties were re-branded as rave parties in the summer of 89. The phenomenon spread across Europe.
After spinning a party in an aircraft hanger in England, Frankie Bones brought the idea back to Brooklyn. He threw some of the earlier raves in New York. Hundreds of rave promoters soon started throwing parties across the east coast. Eventually the west coast started seeing raves and a scene was born. The philosophy of the ravers was PLUR (Peace, Love, Unity & Respect). The ravers were kind of the new hippies. Instead of tie dye and long hair there was candy necklaces and glow sticks, but the spirit was the same – especially the drug use.
A new form of Rave surfaced in the new millennium – Nu Rave. The movement was defined more by the image and aesthetic of its bands and supporters then by the ravers themselves. I was excited about Nu Rave. I was hoping it would catch on and bring a little of New Wave back. But it appears that Nu Rave is already dead. One thing is for certain, the Club Kids will never die. They are a strange and wonderful breed. If you know where to look you can still find Club Kids in the big cities. They are as strong as ever. And if you’re really lucky you will run into an original Blitz Kid or Club Kid.
For this site to be the best we need pictures. So please, please send in your photos. The best ones will get posted. What won’t get posted are negative comments.