As I’ve made blatantly clear, I find the indie rock scene’s sudden fascination with rave culture and everything hoovers-and-horns related to be both highly amusing and a tad annoying, if only because of the number of kids on their way to Foo Fighter shows who used to turn their noses up at the same stuff they’re now going out to dance to on Friday nights.

I just now happened across an article, detailing the *gasp, shock and awe* massive number of police raids and shut-down parties this year at the beardrock-and-beerswill fest that is South By Southwest, located at Austinist:

We might have been two of the biggest events to be shut down, but we weren’t the only ones. Parties in conference rooms, outdoor venues, established party spaces and downtown clubs were all affected. The Fire Inspector had direct orders to shut these parties down, not for safety issues, but for non-compliance to a mystery ordinance. Visitors from all over the world who descend upon Austin every year for the music festival were left wondering, what is going on?

Oh, NO WAY! You’re saying that, at times, county, city and state officials can be total ass-fucks in regards to allowing gatherings of people who are listening to music in a live format, either via DJ or band performing, to enjoy said music, drink and dance, regardless of the number of hoops jumped through to ensure said gathering of people follows every possible rule? Why could that be, do you think? They suspect drugs but don’t have any proof? They really hate that the youth get to party and they don’t? Any or all of the above, or other pieces of illogic?

No. Freaking. Way. Cut it out quit it. You’re pulling my leg. What. A. Travesty.

(yawn.)

Easy there, Jimmy CoolJeans. Before you get all Swayze and try to change the small town via dancing, realize: all of this has been done, this fight has already been fought, and lost/won/lost again. See, there was this little bill called the RAVE act, and it…

Oh, never mind. You’re gonna buy your $10 PBR-tini and listen to DFA Remixes of “Young Folks” while wiki-ing to find out who those “Daft Punk” folks are, anyway, so those of us who’ve done this already-the locked-down water spigots in bathrooms, the dehydration, the imposition on our legal rights by officers of the law who asserted we were breaking legal boundaries by the simple act of dancing (which is something that’s been happening since before Larry Levan was born-we’ll just sit down, shut up, and nod our heads quietly while you lament the fact that you didn’t get to set the world record for most Silversun Pickups shows attended in one day because some clothing store forgot to pay off their resident rent-a-cop. I mean, after all, ravers were amusing at best, annoyingly whiny when busted at worst, right? And that music, god, that music was all annoying and blaring and technoelectronica, yeah? Yeah…

It was once written that those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. I don’t know what that means, but it doesn’t sound like I can dance to it, so I’m not interested.

!!!: Me and Giuliani Down By The Schoolyard

I mean, people always ask me “what’s so fuckin’ great about dancin?” Yeah, well, how the fuck should I know, even I can barely understand it…