Early dancing seems to be getting a bit of a boost though? Dayfever and Annie Mac's "Before Midnight" events seem to be v popular in Ireland and the UK
Yeah because public liability insurance has spiked beyond tolerable levels for post-watershed events, and the licensing board and constabulary are in lock-step for the granting of late licenses to bars and nightclubs to operate past 11.30pm
They use the most spurious justifications regarding newer commercial tenants and antisocial behaviour to deny the legacy cultural tenets their ability to operate as a late-night business from a licensing perspective.
Not at all, otherwise there would have been a dearth of club culture after Acid House and the Electronic Music Acts in the UK. Instead you got the Hacienda and the emergence of Balearic Trance, transforming the UK Northern Soul scene overnight.
You go see older commercial acts in the harder styles (Mauro Picotto, Jeff Mills, Richie Hawtin) and you'll see just how old and how hard those crowds go. The younger crowds tend to go more Business Techno or BoilerRoom madness - Amelie Lens, Charlotte de Witte to FredAgain/Overmono.
That said there is a noticeable difference between the infantilised and hyper-commercial 'PLUR-fest' nonsense in the US - focusing on kandi and costumes last seen in the happy hardcore scene in Europe 30 years ago. It's in stark contrast to the standard European Electronic music festival circuit and dedicated warehouse venues which definitely skew older.
I'd also highlight the average age of a 'raver' in Berlin is about 8 years older than that of a 'US' one. Average age to have a kid in Ireland is about 35. In the US it's 27. That goes a long way towards maintaining a scene!
