Rave collection

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: 8068

COLLECTION DESCRIPTION

Batch one consists of San Francisco Bay area rave cards and flyers. 118 items consisting of single sheets, variously folded leaflets, and a few pamphlets, almost all of them printed on paper or card stocks, two or there on acetate and ranging in size from 24mo to 4to, with the majority being 8vo. Some references include, Melville, Whitman, Sendak, Lewis Carroll, Dr. Seuss, Margaret Meade and rock posters of the 1960s.

Batch two consists of more than 500 rave flyers and stickers, primarily from San Francisco, together with five related newsletters and pamphlets. They feature many of the most popular artists and DJs of the time, such as Moby, Deee-Lite, Prodigy, Todd Terry, Juan Atkins, Peter Tong, Sasha, Roger Sanchez, Derrick Carter, Mark Farina, and many others. Also included are a dozen or more flyers from show promoters, lifestyle retailers (neo-head shops and fashion boutiques), spiritual organizations, and related art exhibitions. The flyers reflect the growing sophistication of the rave scene during the period and its various subcategories such as house, trance, techno, drum and bass, hardcore and others. Performers and DJs represented include Moby, Shamen, Deee-Lite, Rozalla, Prodigy, Daft Punk, The Crystal Method, Fluke, Tony Largo, Markie-Mark, Neon Leon, DJ Ghost, Todd Terry, Peter Avila, Danny Morales, Derrick Carter, Mark Farina, Sasha (Welsh), "Little Louie" Vega, DJ Dimitri, Peter Tong, Juan Atkins, DJ Sanchez, DJ Phil Smart , Graeme Park, DJ Destructo, Yagi, and DJ Dag. The rave-related periodicals in the collection include Ameba Message, number 2 (December 23, 1992), and Rhythmos, number 1 (August 1992). Pamphlets include E info: practical information about Ecstasy (no date); The Imaginal Rave (July 1992), signed Cinnamon Twist; and Tribal Donut #1 (1993), a collection of reprints and excerpts from various New Age and rave books and articles.

Batch three is a collection of 1500 English Rave flyers, collected from approximately 1990 to 1996, advertising parties throughout England featuring such acts as The Prodigy, Justin Berkman, and Adam Realtime.

Batch four consists of a decade of rave flyers from England and is a collection of 6000 English Rave flyers, collected from approximately 1990 to 2000 by an early participant in the London rave scene. Most flyers are for events in England, though Ireland, Scotland, the Netherlands, and Australia are also represented.

Dates

circa 1991-1998.

Creator

Cinnamon Twist. (Title of work: Imaginal rave..) (Person)

Language of Materials

Collection material in English

Biographical / Historical

Rave flyers became one of the most potent symbols of youth culture in the 1990s. Their bright colors signifying a return to psychedelia, their computer-generated design a clue to future technology fetishes, their dense text an invitation to a subculture with its own deities and language. As the popularity of raves grew, it became essential to create flashy, eye-catching flyers to outdo all the other flyers. Flyers grew in both size and complexity. Imported from Chicago in the late 1980s, the English Rave scene paired the country's youth counter culture with house music and Ecstasy and led to a club scene community that could generate parties with thousands of participants, spilling over from London warehouses to countryside fields. English DJs developed their own sound, drawing upon American Hip Hop imports and accessible at-home technologies. The music found its way to radio through pirate stations, and a few bands like Prodigy and N-Joi were able to crossover to FM pop stations.

Extent

5.2 cubic feet. (5.2 cubic feet.)

Additional Description

Abstract

SERIES LIST

<ref target="s1"><emph render="bold">Series I. First Batch, California</emph></ref>: Box 8
<ref target="s2"><emph render="bold">Series II. Second Batch, California</emph></ref>: Box 8
<ref target="s3"><emph render="bold">Series III. Third Batch, England</emph></ref>: Boxes 6-7
<ref target="s4"><emph render="bold">Series IV. Fourth Batch, England</emph></ref>: Boxes 1-5

Physical Description

Flyers.

General

Contact Information:: Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections 2B Carl A. Kroch Library Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14853 (607) 255-3530 Fax: (607) 255-9524rareref@cornell.edu http://rmc.library.cornell.edu
Compiled by:: RMC Staff
Date completed:: June 2013
EAD encoding:: Evan Earle, June 2013
Date modified:: Ben Wrubel, October 2018