Elevation & Volatile State — Total Recall

Catalogue note

An original double-sided flyer for Elevation and Volatile State's Total Recall, a 12-hour rave at Wonderland Arena on Lea Bridge Road, East London, Saturday 7 December 1991, with a private Sunday breakfast-club continuation offered free to main-event attendees. Cosmic Earth/silhouette/laser-grid artwork contrasts with detailed pink/black programme, headlined by Todd Terry and Sally-Ann Marsh and featuring artists associated with Strictly Underground and the founding-year Suburban Base Records roster, plus Eddie Richards, Loftgroover, Colin Dale, Colin Faver, DJ Hype and Jumping Jack Frost. A contemporary November 1991 Ravescene listing fixes the event year; the London Museum holds another original Total Recall flyer as object 96.15/20. The reverse preserves venue directions, ticket pricing, all-night hours, early-rave equipment promises and a widespread ticket-distribution network.

Advertised programme: Live on stage: Sally-Ann Marsh — 'FREE' (printed adjoining text, meaning unknown). Strictly Underground: Sonic Experience; Noise Engineer; Masters of the Universe. Suburban Base: M&M; Austin; Q-Bass. Vinyl Wizards: Todd Terry (exclusively). Other DJs: Evil Eddie Richards; Loftgroover; Colin Dale; Colin Favor [printed; Colin Faver]; The Criminal; Krome; Mike Scott; DJ Hype; Jumping Jack Frost; MC Funki MC. 'All DJs confirmed' claimed in print.

Graphic-design significance: An emblematic early rave retro-future visual combining a NASA-like Earth photograph (source unverified), hovering backlit silhouette and pink/ultraviolet laser grid, balanced by heavy geometric 'TOTAL RECALL' typography. Reverse transforms to three-tier billing panels, record-label motifs, magenta boxed headers and a detailed printed map and ticket network. Strong documentary design value independent of unknown image origin or named designer.

Historical context: A surviving November 1991 Ravescene zine names the 7 December Total Recall event at Wonderland Arena; its archived text transcribes 'Evolution & Volatile State' in one advert line, while the original flyer and specialist caption clearly read Elevation, a discrepancy preserved rather than creating another promoter. In a later August 1994 interview, an Elevation organiser recalled Wonderland as their first venue in 1991. The London Museum permanently holds a separately accessioned Total Recall handbill (96.15/20, broadly dated 1990–1995) credited to the same promoters. Suburban Base's own founding-year release discography independently lists the flyer-billed M&M, Austin and QBass, demonstrating a documented early label-roster snapshot. Flyers document planned performances, 12-hour sound/laser production, ticketing, and a conditional free private Sunday breakfast continuation, not verified attendance/execution.

Production note: Photographic/illustrated multicolour front and magenta/pale boxed information reverse. Exact offset/screen/other process, paper finish and grammage unconfirmed.

Condition note: Very Good / Very Good+ photographic appraisal: full edges visible, crisp high-contrast cosmic art and clean, highly legible pink/black reverse. Slight corner/edge handling, minute surface specks and light age traces; no clear major folds, tears, pinholes, tape, stains or paper loss. Not called mint; no tactile paper examination.

Confidence / uncertainty: Strong physical and independent verification of event name, promoter, venue, date/year 1991, printed 10pm–10am 12h, three billing groups, prices and additional Sunday club offer. The word 'FREE' after Sally-Ann Marsh is printed but its exact sense is unresolved: do not declare whole rave or her set free on that basis. Museum item's visual print state and user-copy size unverified. Attribution of artist or graphic image source unknown; billed names/technical attractions are promotional claims, not independently proven attendance, equipment or outcomes. 'Colin Favor' on print corresponds to Colin Faver and is preserved as a name variant.

Through the flyers

Explore the club-culture timeline to follow advertised dates, places and billed performers across the held flyers.

Event details are drawn from the held object and the qualified catalogue research above. A printed bill establishes an advertised booking, not confirmation that a performer appeared.