It’s cool to dance on your own sometimes, but rave culture is an inherently communal practice. No matter what country you’re from or what language you speak, you can recognize the transformative power of a four-to-the-floor house beat, the Autumn-apple crispness of a 909 handclap, the captivating heat of the “Amen” break, or the extraterrestrial inertia of a subsonic bass line.
Raving has its roots in the house and techno innovations of queer, Black, and Brown communities of Chicago and Detroit in the 1980s, and from there electronic music grew quickly into a global phenomenon centered around electronic instruments, chemical release, and the mantra of “PLUR” (peace, love, unity, and respect). Nowadays there are a growing number of major international cities where you can tap into like-minded rave communities simply by going to a club or festival.
The Best Raves in the World
A “rave” can mean a lot of different things, and raves go down in all sorts of venues, including illegal and semi-legal warehouses, DIY spaces, and grassy fields in the middle of nowhere. As a kind of starter pack, DoubleBlind put together a guide that focuses on top-tier nightclubs in major cities where techno, house, disco, drum ’n’ bass, and other rave-friendly styles of electronic music are known to flourish.
Berghain / Panorama Bar in Berlin, Germany
The world-famous Berghain and its Panorama Bar upstairs should be the first stops on any globe-trotting raver’s bucket list—not that you’re guaranteed to get in, of course, considering that even some of the most respected names in house and techno music have been turned away due to the club’s discerning door policy. Getting in promises intimate access to an inclusive, LGBTQ-oriented scene as well as a top-tier sound system and some of the best DJs and electronic artists in the world. But even if you spend a night waiting anxiously in line (ideally while keeping your phone in your pocket, dressing down, and having some German phrases and an understanding of the night’s lineup at ready), at least you can say you’ve been there. Besides, there are plenty of other amazing techno outposts to visit in Friedrichshain and other parts of the Grey City.
Address: Am Wriezener bhf, 10243 Berlin, Germany
Other Berlin rave haunts: Tresor, ://about blank, Kit Kat Club
Nowadays in New York City, USA
New York City has always been a major hub for dance music, going back to the days of Larry Levan and the Paradise Garage and even before that. While the mystique of Berlin’s discerning club culture has rubbed off on the city (at least in the case of the consent-oriented, catacombs-like Basement), Nowadays represents the brighter side of New York raver nightlife. The sprawling venue in Queens was launched by Eamon Harkin and Justin Carter—founders of the long-running day party Mister Sunday—and it has the friendly vibe of a friend’s house party or backyard BBQ. The 5,000-square-foot warehouse section of the venue serves as an incubator for techno, jungle, dancehall, and many other dance subgenres, which boom over the custom-built sound system while staff keeps the vibe right with a no-phones rule.
Address: 56-06 Cooper Ave, Queens, NY 11385
Other NYC rave haunts: Holo, Good Room, Bossa Nova Civic Club
Club Space in Miami, USA
This downtown Miami megaclub has a vaunted past: Originally founded in 2000 by nightlife guru Louis Puig, it’s been a magnet for major DJs like house legends Frankie Knuckles and Danny Tenaglia, who helped create an environment of spontaneous magic while spinning wax in hours-long sets. Today Club Space remains a beloved institution, just one of the venues that has made the Magic City a major EDM travel destination. A cavernous wonderland of laser lights, disco balls, and jungle vines, Space welcomes all types of revelers: “Come as you are, as long as you’re not wearing sandals.” (The door policy is more forgiving than other locations). puts it. Parties stretch until dawn, so make sure to head to the terrace to watch the sun rise.
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Address: 34 NE 11th St, Miami, FL 33132
Other Miami rave haunts: Do Not Sit on the Furniture, Treehouse, E11even
Club Vinyl in Denver, USA
Denver has gained the title “Bass Capital of the West” thanks to its reputation for incubating the chest-caving dubstep and trap beats of local artists like Jaenga and GRiZ. But the Mile High City’s thriving electronic music scene covers a lot of other ground too, and you can get a sampling of all the beats the city has to offer at this four-level, 18-and-up space. Owned by a consortium that runs several other popular clubs in town—including The Church, Bar Standard, and Milk—Club Vinyl saw a major turnaround in popularity at the height of the 2010s EDM boom when management rolled out a coveted Funktion-One sound system to deliver massive power and pristine detail across the main dancefloor. Friday night is devoted to reggaeton and other booty-shaking Latin tunes, while Saturday gives you the full platter of house, techno, and, of course, bass music.
Address: 1082 Broadway, Denver, CO 80203
Other Denver rave haunts: Black Box, Temple, Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom
Yu Yu in Mexico City, Mexico
Mexico’s sprawling capital city is home to a diverse array of music genres and styles, and so it’s no surprise that the nightlife scene is just as eclectic. Situated in a 120-capacity basement space, Yu Yu regularly plays host to world-class DJs who take ravers on daring adventures, skipping across the kick-drum patterns of anything from footwork to reggaeton in twists and turns that bring the crowd together through underground taste and collective joy. Local collectives like Cuatro Cuartos, NAAFI, and Departure Records have all taken turns on the decks, and international touring artists also regularly come through. The venue also features a speakeasy-type bar where thirsty dancers can order classy cocktails as well as a record store that’s open during the day.
Address: C. Versalles 94, Juárez, Cuauhtémoc, 06600 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Other Mexico City rave haunts: Departamento, Fünk Club, Sunday Sunday
Amnesia in Ibiza, Spain
You’d be hard-pressed not to find a club worth going to in any corner of Ibiza, the Balearic island so famed for its party scene that it has a genre named for it. Among the can’t-miss destinations is Amnesia, an island institution that has been putting on parties since 1976. Two giant rooms regularly bring out huge crowds during the summer season to revel in the eclectic dance beats and laser lights, all punctuated by Amnesia’s famed ice cannons that go off without notice. Although the place gets packed, Amnesia isn’t riven with reports of overcrowding as is the case with other much-hyped venues, and of course the famed Terrace remains the place to be at dawn, when house-heads who’ve been dancing all night can finally take in the first rays of morning light as they shine through the windows.
Address: Platja d’en Bossa, 07817, Balearic Islands, Spain
Other Ibiza rave haunts: Pacha, Hï, Ushuaïa
XOYO in London, England
Immigration policy, socioeconomic conditions, and innovations in medicinal chemistry have all played a role in shaping the many vibrant styles of electronic music that have come out of London over the decades. Today, the city’s many nightclubs and warehouse spaces continue to shape developments in beatmaking and rave culture. Whether or not you have a grasp on the finer ins and outs of the DJ scene, Shoreditch’s XOYO is well worth a visit. The bi-level space hosts a quarterly residence series that has given a platform for major names like Ben UFO and the Blessed Madonna, and XOYO also offers egalitarian access to the greatest in techno, house and disco via its Saturday-night Pleasurehood parties, with a mere £5 cover charge offering a gateway to sweaty, all-night bliss.
Address: 32-37 Cowper St, London EC2A 4AP, United Kingdom
Other London rave haunts: Fabric, Egg, Phonox
Womb in Tokyo, Japan
After a day of crate-digging at the many grail-laden record stores peppered around Tokyo’s famed Shibuya commercial district, why not make your way to the four-floor bacchanal of pumping beats and choreographed light shows known as Womb? Located in a sleek gray building, the club has been running strong for nearly 25 years and is known to bring in top-tier DJs and a friendly, international mix of party people for packed evenings of balls-to-the-wall abandon. The club boasts a pristine sound system, and it’s also been known to employ one of the loudest smoke machines known to man.
Address: 2-16 Maruyamacho, Shibuya City, Tokyo 150-0044, Japan
Other Tokyo rave haunts: Mitsuki, Vent, Circus Tokyo
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