Music
The music that Melbourne Shufflers originally danced to was House Music and Acid house in the late 1980s. In the early 1990s as Trance music came in the dancing style changed to a glide which changed back when Minimal House came in. In 2007 Melbourne shufflers listen to hard trance, hardstyle, jumpstyle, hard house, psytrance, breakbeat, drum and bass, Tribal House and Techno.
Dancing
Today known as "rocking" to the Melbourne locals, the name "Melbourne Shuffle" has been derived from overseas DJs, partygoers, visitors and the media trying to describe this phenomenon. Locals have simply called it the "shuffle" since 1992. The Melbourne rave/electronic music dancers don't generally dance for competition; or to show off, but for themselves, for fun and self-expression. Learning is generally achieved through watching other dancers and incorporating variations into their own style, by which they create an individual style representing their own personality.
Some dancers sprinkle talcum powder on the floor beneath their feet to help them glide more easily. The use of talc to improve dancing has been around for decades, particularly popular with dancers at Northern Soul all-nighters in the US.