By James Broadhurst

Cast your minds back to the bland surroundings of suburban England in the early ‘90s.

A land dominated by the violent and crime-fuelled gang culture which entraps generation after generation of the countries youth and takes them down a path leading to nothing but a bad end.

This was the landscape confronting Otiz F. Angel as a pubescent teenager who is torn between following in the footsteps of family members in the family business or pursuing lucrative opportunities provided by one of the most significant music movements in modern history.

Since making his decision Otiz F. Angel has been an ever present entity and influence in rave and club culture throughout the UK, Europe and abroad and he made a decision to document his trials, tribulations, successes and the result is Rave Story.

Angel’s story reveals the good, the bad and the ugly parts of underworld culture as well as giving the reader unprecedented access to one of the brightest and determined minds in music promotion.

Angel started one of North London’s first pirate radio stations, Obsession FM, as one his first investments and has since gone on to establish the, now globally recognised, LOVE organization that is one of the most successful and prolific clubbing brands.

The initial inspiration for Rave Story was a film script they, the Love organization, were asked to put together to detail the rapid rise from underground after-hours club to international club brand.

With all of the memories and happenings in Angel’s eventful, and at times turbulent, life retracing his footsteps was never going to be an easy process and even though he didn’t know what to expect he now knows it was all worth it.

“I had no idea how much we were biting off. As Rave Story evolved into a book it got harder and harder emotionally, as I seemed to be reliving the events as I remembered them. The whole book took a year and two months to write, and then a few months longer to whip into shape but now I realise it was worth it.”

Rave Story takes the reader deep into the gritty and, at times, all too familiar realm of the underground music scene and gangland culture as Angel struggles to maintain a balance between family commitments and pursuing his dreams and desires.

So the question remains, how did someone living and loving the gangster lifestyle as a young man take a liking to the opportunities and lifestyle on offer within the music industry?

Music can do wondrous things. Music offered Angel a chance to use the creativity he always believed he possessed from an early age. Being able to nurture his creative talents gave him much more than the ability to sell a few records and earn a few bucks on the side.
“I found the music always gave me a sense of freedom. Using the creative side of my mind actually gave me a release. Now making and playing music is second nature to me, and in some ways you could say music saved my life.”

There are many moments and situations in Rave Story many who were around when Rave culture exploded throughout the world will find all too familiar and those who were unable, or unaware, of what was happening will find this, almost historical, recollection of moods, feelings and memories intriguing for all the right reasons.

One of the most likeable and exciting thing about Rave Story is the way it isn’t afraid to raise and explore, often in great detail, the less than attractive side of Angel’s personality as he embarks on vendettas which resulted his incarceration on more than one occasion.

Even with the sheer amount of information in Rave Story Angel says there was just as much omitted from the final published copy of the novel and with two more novels on the way, restrictions on space were not behind the omission of certain events or circumstances.

“I had to leave loads out of Rave Story. There were also too many parts that were much too personal and much too graphic, or might have even got me flung back in jail, so I obviously opted to keep it limited.”

Angel has seen the dance music industry evolve and metamorphose from an underground movement into a commercially viable and lucrative marketplace full of business opportunities for those with enough guts and determination to take a chance.

These changes are something Angel feels very passionately about, but he would like to see organisations and clubbing culture give something back.

“At the start of the scene there was a strong sense of unity and direction. As it flowered into a commercial environment the soul behind the movement seemed to become more and more docile. But things change. At the moment my nightclub brand, Love, is joining forces with Earthdance, Peace One Day and other organizations to bring a social and environmental awareness back to the scene as well as provide pumping new music and wild events.”

Rave Story should be enjoyed for what it is. A damn good read for anyone with a passing interest in the roots of clubbing culture or anyone who likes a modern day ‘rags-to-riches’ tale will be more than satisfied with what is sandwiched between the Rave Story  covers.

For Angel, he hopes his tale will provide people with a little more than light entertainment.

“I do hope that many people find inspiration within the pages of Rave Story and enjoy the hedonistic mayhem and good times, yet find comfort in knowing that they are not alone through the bad times.”

With the direction of his immensely successful brand well and truly cemented for the future Angel believes there is enough goodwill within the industry to maintain and ensure the diversity and vibrancy we currently enjoy in clubbing culture.

“I’m pretty outspoken and a bit of a perfectionist, so I’ll most likely always have an opinion about the direction of the scene. But I do have faith that there are still enough good clubbers out there who will keep the scene progressive and alive.”

All in all Rave Story is an incredibly intriguing, informative and intriguing account of someone who has dedicated their life to the progression and continual improvement of Rave culture.

We are fortunate enough to have several copies of Rave Story to give away. To be in the running for a free copy of the book please send your address and the answer to this question to editor@teknoscape.com.au.

Q: What is Otiz F. Angel’s clubbing brand called?

     A) Live
     B) Life
     C) Love
     D) Loaf