#1 __ art of the promo

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outer ] [ space

11 min readNov 8, 2018

Historically, the dance music scene has done a terrible job at documenting itself. There’s countless reasons for this which could (and probably will) make for its own essay — suffice to say, recording the beauty and genius in this culture matters to me. I adore a good flyer, and it’s been such a delight to see the huge range of creativity and talent in the designs. So I thought I’d enshrine some of my favorite promos I’ve come across.

Unter

The night I discovered Unter, I spent hours poring over their past events, studying all their promos. They were the best I’d ever seen. Each one uniquely evokes that kind of aloof coolness of Unter’s aesthetic. Besides being a fantastic quality edit, it’s just peppered with little details and flavor that make it fun to study.

They’re so well made that many don’t even look like promos. One could easily scroll past some of these and not realize what it was. Others are more ostentatious, and come with some fun copy.

UNTER: RAVE — SPRAY & SLAY FLOOR KILLER
Suffering an infestation of bad vibes? Plagued by a repressive scourge of deep-seated inhibitions that just won’t die? Do you have ants? Well if so, you’re in luck, because we at Unter Creative Aerosol Solutions have mastered the art of mood-altering fog synthesis, and we’ve put it in a can for your raving convenience!
Just one generous spray of our extra-concentrated freak-tested formula is 100%-guaranteed to kill the floor for over 8 hours and pound all your troubles into submission. 4 out of 5 exterminators agree: Unter Rave products will disinfect, delouse, deodorize and disencumber your aura, leaving your fonction PLURfectly proper and sparkling clean for all the children to dance hard and pest-free.

Ding Dong! Have you been expecting a giant package?
Unter Courier Service has been ringing your bell for all of 2017, and nobody has been available to accept our delivery.
We get it, it was a tough year, but we at UCS strive to be the benchmark in friendly and punctual porty logistics and vibe distribution, delivering our custom line of celebratory beatdowns and gift-baskets to each and every one of our customers come rain, come snow, come wind, or come hail. But unfortunately, due to your prolonged lack of reply, we can no longer deliver our parcel to your apartment building, and you must come to Unter’s shipping headquarters to claim and receive it. Please report directly to our dispensary (Nowadays, 56–06 Cooper Avenue, Ridgewood NY) between the hours of 8AM and 8PM on New Year’s Day, January 1, 2018, to ensure that your package is spoken for and collected safely, promptly, and with maximum impact.

Fourth World

Fourth World 2018 is what convinced me this needed documentation. The flyer itself is solid, but the copy is absolutely sublime. It’s hilarious, engaging, it has such a strong voice. It’s a true product of our time with the slapdash typography and kaomoji and rapid-fire references to slang that we’ll probably all have forgotten about 10 years from now. Turns out that the 2017 flyer is also good (not quite as amazing as 2018, but still delightful). I’d love to copy them both here, but they’re absurdly long.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
★ ★ ★ ★ 18 H O U R P A R T Y ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ F R E E H O T D O G S ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
ATMOSPHERE PROVIDED BY ||| Nitemind and Kip Davis |||
╔══╗
║(O)║♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ BY ||| subBASS Soundsystem |||
╚══╝
W/ LIVE PERFORMANCES BY
|| PRINCESS PERCOCET
|||| DESTINY BE
|||||| LUCAS GIRINO
+ COSMIC COOKOUT COURTESY OF OUR FRIENDS AT
//❂.❂//~~// REMEDI FOOD //~~//❂.❂//
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
CONVENIENTLY SITUATED IN E.WBURG/BUSHWICK
((DEPENDS ON WHO YA ASK THESE DAYS))
LOCATION REVEALED TO TICKET HOLDERS ONLY!
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
A MESSAGE TO ALL PAST PATRONS
& THE GRANDER CONSTITUENCY:
THE 4TH ANNUAL CONGREGATION
OF THIS ILLUSTRIOUS OCCASION
WILL HERETOFORE COMMENCE,
WHILE NOW PROUDLY FEATURING
WHAT ALL NEW YORKERS CRAVE SO DEARLY …
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — -
.
.
.
S P A C E
.
.
.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
YES, SPACE. AND BOY DO WE MEAN IT.
| | | ||||| | | | ENVISION IF YOU WILL | | | | ||||| | | |
▇ ▅ █ ▅ 22,000 METRIC TONS ▅ ▄ ▅ ▇
»» — — — — — — — ► OF CONCRETE & STEEL
/////\\////////// TOWERING ABOVE AND BELOW \\\\
EXPERIENCE THE WORLD ANEW ／人 ◕‿‿◕ 人＼
AMIDST A RUSH OF SIGHTS, SOUNDS
& THE EVER ENDURING TOTALITY OF
|||||||| |||||||| INDUSTRIAL ZONING |||||||| |||||||| ||||||||
┬┴┬┴┤･ω･)ﾉ├┬┴┬┴┬┴┬┴┴┬┴├┬┴
>>>>>>> > > >> YOU WANT INDOORS?
>>>>> > >>WE GOT INDOORS. >>>>>>>>
>> > > > > GUESS WHAT …
GOT PLENTY OF THAT TOO ;) ;) ;)
☁ ▅▒░☼‿☼░▒▅ ☁ ▅▒░☼‿☼░▒▅ ☁
WHY, IF IT GRABS YA, YOU COULD:
- PARK A BOAT
- BUILD A BLIMP
- START SOME SLAPDASH SEGWAY TOUR EVEN
¯\_(ツ)_/¯¯\_(ツ)_/¯¯\_(ツ)_/¯¯\_(ツ)_/¯¯\_(ツ)_/¯
AIN’T NO MATTER TO US!!
JUST BE MINDFUL AS U DO IT!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
★★★ RESPECT FOR OTHERS ABOVE ALL ★★★
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ALL STRIPES ALL CREEDS + THE BIRDS & THE BEES
IF YOU DON’T MIND ANOTHER’S PERSUASION
THIS HERE’S CERTAINLY YOUR OCCASION!!
BUT YES INDEEDY, U HEARD RIGHT,
THESE BOYS R OFFICIALLY ✔✔✔ BONAFIDE ✔✔✔
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SO GATHER ROUND THE FOILAGE PEOPLE
♪ ♫ ♬ AND FEEL FREE TO TAP A TOE OR TWO ♪ ♫ ♬♪
/////// // // /// TO WHAT MAY VERY WELL BE THE MOST
❚█══█❚ HEAVILY ESTEEMED ❚█══█❚
ASSEMBLAGE OF OPEN MINDED INDIVIDUALS
THIS FAIR CITY HAS EVER SEEN !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ-̫͡-ʔʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ-̫͡-ʔʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*
ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ-̫͡-ʔʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ-̫͡-ʔʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-
ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ-̫͡-ʔʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ-̫͡-ʔʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ
-̫͡-ʔʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ-̫͡-ʔʕ•̫͡•ʕ*̫͡*ʕ•͓͡•ʔ-̫͡-ʕ•̫͡•ʔ*̫͡*ʔ-̫͡-
♪┏(°.°)┛┗(°.°)┓┗(°.°)┛┏(°.°)┛┗(°.°)┓┗(°.°)┛ ♪
BE PREPARED TO FEEEAAASSST UR HUNGRY LYPZ
★★★★★★ ON DOG AFTER DOG ★★★★★★★
AS WE COLLECTIVELY BARE WITNESS TO THE TRUE
⁀) ✫ ✫ ✫.
`⋎´✫¸.•°*”˜˜”*°•✫
..✫¸.•°*”˜˜”*°•.✫
☻/ღ˚ •。* ღღ ˚ ˚✰˚ ˛★* 。 ღ˛° 。* °ღ ˚ • ★ *˚ .ღ 。
/▌*˛˚ ░░░░ G ░ R ░ A ░ N ░ D ░ E ░ U ░ R ░░░ ˚ ✰* ★
/ \ ˚. ★ *˛ ˚ღღ* ✰。˚ ˚ღ。* ˛˚ ღღ 。✰˚* ˚ ★ღ ˚ 。✰ •* ˚ ღღ”
★★★★★ OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT ★★★★★★★
AS IT FREES ITSELF — EVER SO GRACEFULLY — FROM
👏 THE DOCTRINES 👏 TO 👏 WHICH 👏
👏 IT 👏 HAS 👏 BEEN 👏 BOUND 🙌 🎆
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
***ENTIRELY-NOT-LIMITED-AT-ALL CAPACITY ***
*** STRICTLY PRESALES ONLY YA VARMINTS!!!! ***
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★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★
★ 21 AND OVER ★★★★★★★★★★★★★★
★ CUZ YOU CANT SPELL SECEDE ★★★★
★WITHOUT SUCCEED ;) ★★★★★★★★★
★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★
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F O U R T H W O R L D 2K17
♫♪.ılılıll|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|̲̅̅=̲̅̅|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|llılılı.♫♪

Electric Circus

I came across these amazing samples while reading Night Fever, a book that documents club culture in a series of interviews, essays, and photos. Electric Circus was not specifically about dance as it was the whole audio-visual experience, about being an adult playground. The blurred typography is wild, too; it sits right on that border of legibility, just clear enough to be scannable.

They also had some weird and hilarious posters done by Tomi Ungerer. You don’t know exactly what’s being said, but whatever it is, it’s kinky and you’ve probably never seen it before.

Black Hole

Alkhemy adopted this comic book aesthetic for its Black Hole series. They’re colorful, eye-catching, and memorable. They’ve got a personal touch, too: the woman in the center is one of the founders of Alkhemy. This was the first rave I went to in Brooklyn, so it’s got a special place in my heart.

Groovy Groovy

I discovered this rave in the basement of my building last fall. I came home late one night and there was thunderous bass erupting from the back door. The cover was $30 and I sadly didn’t have the energy to dance that night — which was doubly frustrating because the noise carried all the way into my fourth-floor bedroom until it ended at 10am. But I went into the bar the next afternoon and asked for the flyer so I could track them down. These might be my very favorite of all.

When I saw these flyers, my heart sang. I had come back from Berlin hunting for raves but two months in, was having trouble finding the real deal. That one phrase told me me everything I needed to know: if you are not sweating you are doing it wrong. Here, most assuredly, would be a place where I could lose myself to the music. I never ended up making it to a Groovy Groovy rave, but these flyers are pinned to the walls of my heart.

Great flyers do so much more than dish out the facts. They’re part of the identity of the party. They give you a taste of what sort of experience is being curated, because the type of person who will be at that party is the sort of person that might be attracted to that flyer. They help set the mood before you walk in the door. They promote and propagate the core values of the community.

There’s hundreds more promos I could share, and I think I’ll be returning to this topic in the future. But these are my favorites of what I’ve encountered so far. If you’ve got favorites, I’d love to hear about them.

Last Week: Sutherland & Grayscale

I briefly stopped by a new place off the Montrose L, Sutherland, to see what it was like. It’s in what used to be a sorta barren, uninspired space called The Wick. It’s now a properly furnished gay club. They enforce a no phones policy with Yondr pouches, which I will admit I thought I would hate; from a distance, it gives off a pretentious vibe. How special do you think you are to lock my phone up, that you own my time and attention like that? But in practice, it’s actually great. You don’t see anyone off to the side staring at their phones — everyone’s talking, participating, engaged. The vibes are good. I just wish it were more convenient.

The trouble is with the dance floor. It’s huge, loaded with potential, but as it stands they don’t have the right lights or speakers to take command of the space. The lighting setup is a single circular rig hung above the dance floor, which leaves much of the space (which is sorta trapezoidal) feeling unfulfilled, forgotten. Because it’s such a big space, the sides and corners never really get any love. The size is also part of the trouble with the audio. Their system just isn’t tuned to the space; it felt washed out and distant. I guess this is how I know I’m becoming a snob, because the quality of the sound system is what eventually sent me on my way. I was particularly craving some rich sound that night, and I knew what was going down at Output.

I steeled myself for Brooklyn’s shittiest crowd and least friendly staff. I set my mind to focus on one thing: the music. Funnily enough, I don’t have a lot to say about the music; Headless Horseman and Function were what I expected, and well-produced industrial techno benefits so strongly from the full range of sound you get with Output’s sound system. You can really crawl into the nooks and crannies of each measure.

This was my one-year anniversary party since my visit to Tresor where I discovered techno, and what this night special was that even though I went alone, I wound up in a big a group of friends, with so many of the lovely people I’ve met over the last year of parties. The flow of Output makes it super easy to bump into people — you can dance your way through the whole venue (or at least, the main room — I never went into the Panther Room or the roof) without ever losing your flow, scanning past all the rest areas, weaving through the 3 stairwells, and you just naturally bump into people. I spent the first hour posted up by myself, started dancing circuits through the club, gradually finding more and more friends until we pitched up at the front of the dance floor for the whole night. Our little sanctuary amidst predictably terrible crowd, which was filled with weird stiff dudes in button-downs and polos.

Something I’ve previously neglected about Output’s dance floor is the hexagonal grate they have at the head of the dance floor, in front of the DJ booth. This is a picture I took like two years ago, back before they banned cameras on the dance floor.

It feels great to hang from — you get a good grip with all your fingers and swing around, jump up and down, and at some point I realized that if you slapped it kinda hard it makes this delightful metallic clank, so I was slamming on that to the beat for a while and my hands are pretty sore. I really hope it wasn’t annoying because I was having a blast with that thing.

Output sucks, but with a couple friends to drown out the grossness, it can still be a great experience. Maybe some day they’ll hire friendly staff, or start taking harassment seriously, or change their image. I won’t be holding my breath.