We talk with him about projects like his photobook Acid House As It Happened (published by IDEA Ltd), an honest and gritty work; where you can really feel the British determination to dance. There is a political energy that pulses through the collection, as ravers doggedly commit themselves to the cause despite, or perhaps in spite, of the repressive right-wing government they were under at the time. London’s nightlife was shifting, it was no longer exclusive to the well-off of the West end, and clubs became accepting of all types of people. Swindells captures moments in clubs, depots and warehouses, like Shoom and Trip, giving us a taster of what the Second Summer of Love was all about.
He knew he was there for the start of something big and there was something addictive about the feeling of liberation felt by all those attending the raves. In his work Ibiza ‘89, we see an upgraded version of that feeling of freedom; Ibiza was a raver’s nirvana, with the key ingredients of the sun, sea, open-air superclubs and drugs. Ibiza ‘89 is a holistic work, where the island’s trance-like quality emerges, and you can hear Balearic beats in the background as a soundtrack to their hedonism. Swindells tells us about his career, how it all began and what he thinks of the future of raving.