The Acid House Revival Of Rave Flyers

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Through the haze of a drug fuelled, party focused yesteryear, we’re still channeling rave culture through modern design…

Picture this: It’s the late 80’s/early 90s, you’re an impressionable angsty teenager living in London grappling with hormones and an unquenchable thirst for independence. Underground rave culture has a vice grip on you and the city of London, and it’s rapidly sweeping across Europe too. Choreographing your weekends with friends of friends who are throwing illegal parties at abandoned warehouses where such and such is playing (which you won’t tell your mum about), you’re part of a generation that will influence and fuel the foundation of party culture for decades to come.

Acid house became the genre to define an era, the staple sound for a generation of youth formulated partly as an act of rebellion, and partly as a catalyst for expression. From aesthetic, to language, fashion statements and broader lifestyle choices, the scene as a whole was not easily digested within the community - you could say that acid house was dance musics’ response to punk music. Gritty, raw, dark, and heavy, venues such as the The Trip At Astoria and Shoom in London acted as the feeding ground for this kind of culture, and all we can do now is look on at the grainy vintage footage fondly, thinking ‘damn I wish I could have been there...’

What accompanied was a cornucopia of posters to replicate this unique and new culture. An aesthetic boasting a complete disregard for text-book graphic design archetypes, and in an aim to free from the constraints of cultural norms, rave flyers became a powerful tool for emerging artists and for the genre as a whole. Characterised by an array of highly saturated colours, 3D graphics, distorted patterns bordering on optical illusions, and an overall perception of some kind of psychedelic trip, flyers became a completely crucial component to the movement as a whole.

If you thought rave flyers were a thing of the past, then my friend you are mistaken. Rave flyers are back, and as wicked as ever. As the kind of person who sometimes pick records purely based off unique cover art; a dilettante who has an entire pinterest folder dedicated to vintage rave flyers, and also lingers perhaps a little too long in a dirty alleyway to marvel at the kaleidoscope of event flyers plastered on a wall, this resurgence as a whole has been a delectable visual treat. If you’re a self proclaimed design junkie like me, look no further than the largest vintage rave flyer archive on the web - yep, you’re welcome.

My favourite visual auteurs in the modern era are undoubtedly record labels like Mall Grab’s Steel City Dance Discs, and the notorious Lobster Theremin Record Label. Consistently laden with aggressive fonts, highly contrasted colours, and distorted graphics, it’s truly a feast for the eyes and serves it’s purpose successfully. Designers like cm-dp consistently give a tip of the hat to that most nostalgic era modern party goers can only reminisce about: from the unexpected colour schemes to the unapologetic use of almost illegible font faces, this kind of visual aesthetic acts as the physical embodiment of the music itself. Lobster Theremin head honcho Asquith’s well-tuned taste in music is paired perfectly with this maintained visual aesthetic, no doubt confirming why his imprint record label remains to be one of the most reputable and exciting labels within the industry - which also highlights the importance of graphic design within the modern day sonic arena. Shit yeah, rave on forever.


Friends Of Friends With Asquith (Lobster Theremin)

Friday 26th April, Glamorama

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