All Artists
The people who built the sound, from the roots before rave through acid house, hardcore, jungle, drum & bass, house, techno and trance. The directory is historical rather than popularity-led because the scene makes more sense when the generations remain connected.
Rave was built by careers that crossed over
Artist roles were never tidy job titles. DJs produced records, MCs became vocalists, producers performed live and artists crossed styles as the scene changed around them.
Foundations
Disco, rare groove, Chicago house, Detroit techno, radio and sound-system culture supplied people and ideas rave inherited.
Acid house & rave
New DJs, producers, MCs and live acts appear as warehouse culture becomes a national scene.
Hardcore branches
Hardcore, jungle, trance, hard techno and progressive house increasingly develop specialist artists and communities.
New scenes & new generations
Drum & bass, hard house and later scenes grow their own stars while older pioneers remain active.
122 artists in historical order
Search by name, role or genre. The directory keeps the full catalogue in one place, with 24 artists shown per page.
Follow artists into the archive
Profiles reconnect people to recordings, flyers, venues, labels, radio and the wider history around the tapes.
