In 1998 I turned up in London as a very naive Aussie backpacker with a 2 year visa. Was not interested in dance music or drugs but was happy to be led to places by people who were.
Weirdest early experience was a French guy in my hostel was into techno and was going to an illegal rave. To find the venue we went to Leicester Square Burger King at 11pm on a Saturday night, there were small groups of people hanging around looking weirdly at each other waiting for someone to lead. Suddenly some people start walking and everyone follows them, onto two night buses and we're in the middle of nowhere in Ealing. People all heading in the same direction, we follow and end up at a warehouse rave that's pumping. All i wanted was a beer but there wasn't any, then a small car drives into the warehouse full of booze so i was happy. Everyone else was clearly off their tits.
In that first year i went to Baggleys, MoS and others but didn't get it as i was just drinking beers.
Then i got into the drugs towards the end of 98. Started going to The Fridge and then Frantic hard house nights started up. These were great. Also the backpacker house party scene, especially NW London around Willesden Green, was massive. It was very much you had to know someone but once you were in it was brilliant. Backpacker houses were cleared out and turned into parties that would go from Friday night to Sunday afternoon. DJs would set up in the living room or sometimes the bath of the bathroom. The strangest thing was i never saw the police come once. These were parties that wouldn't stop for 48 hours, you could hear them streets away, were held in terrace houses in "nice" neighbourhoods, yet the police never stopped them. Used to ask certain bar staff at the Spotted Dog pub in Willesden where the party was that weekend.
Then Frantic set up in Sydney when i went back in 2000. The best parties were Sydney Harbour boat raves. Would start at midday and end at 6pm, out on a party boat where anything goes and no one can get off, if you weren't there to get fucked and dance it made for a long afternoon. Good times