The Melbourne shuffle is a style of dance,
which originated in the late 1980s in the Melbourne underground scene. The basic
movements in the dance are a fast heel-and-toe action with a style
suitable for various types of electronic music. Some variants
incorporate arm movements.[1]
The Melbourne shuffle was one of several dances that emerged
during the acid house era around 1990.
Although the precise origin of the style is unknown, it does bear a
resemblance to earlier jazz dance styles.[2][3].
The Melbourne shuffle begins to emerge as a distinct dance,
incorporating more hand movement than previous styles. Early
footage of the style exists from a night on the 31st of August 1991
at the Sarah Sands Hotel in Melbourne[4]. Techno music was
gradually replaced with trance
music and house
music[citation
needed].
A number of videos documenting the style during this era exist
as the style increased in popularity[5]. There are many
variations of this dance but the main heel to toe movement remained
the key motion giving it the term "the Melbourne shuffle".
In 2006 with the emergence of YouTube, dancers internationally
now contribute to the Shuffle online, posting their own versions
and learning from others[6].
The music that early Melbourne shufflers danced to was house
music and acid house in the late
1980s. In the early 1990s, as trance music became popular,
the dancing style changed to a glide. It regressed to the previous
style when minimal house came in. In 2007, the music that
Melbourne shufflers typically listen to are hard
trance, hardstyle, hard house, hard dance and Electronica.
Although the shuffle dance style could be performed to any genre of
music, there is a preference for the 130-150 bpm
hardstyle
Today known as "shuffling" to the Melbourne locals, the name
"Melbourne shuffle" has been derived from overseas DJs, party goers, visitors and
the media trying to describe this phenomenon. The Age referred to it as
looking like "a cross between the chicken dance and a foot stomping
robot" to the untrained eye[1],
but locals have simply called it the "shuffle" since 1992.
Some dancers sprinkle talcum
powder on the floor beneath their feet to help
them glide more easily, some including 360 degree spins or jumps
into their moves.[1]
The Melbourne shuffle dance style has remained relatively
underground since its birth in the late 80s and early 90s. The term
"Melbourne shuffle" was recorded in the media when Sonic
Animation's Rupert Keiller was interviewed by
rage, an all night Australian
music TV show[7]. The interviewer
asked Rupert what his unique style of dance was and the reply was
"the Melbourne Shuffle". In December of 2002 The Age, an Australian
newspaper, made mention of the term in a front page
article[1],
attempting to illustrate what the popular Melbourne Shuffle was for
the first time to the mainstream public.
The shuffle has spread to Malaysia and in Brunei (even
Singapore) and there have been "Shuffle Competitions" and "Shuffle
Meetups" held in Malaysia and Brunei [8].
Shufflers have taken their art form and self-expressive dance
style overseas and are a regular sight to be seen at rave parties in the UK, Germany, Malaysia and also
Thailand, where shufflers can
be seen shuffling on the beaches of Koh Phang Ngan during the Full
Moon Beach Party. The internet has also been a factor in spreading
knowledge and interest in the shuffle.
A documentary on the topic entitled Melbourne
Shuffler[9] was in production
during 2004-2005 and was recently released in late 2005 on DVD.