Mark Stefanos
Before Coachella, before Tomorrowland, before Ultra, before EDC left Los Angeles, and before EDC even existed, ravers entered Nocturnal Wonderland through the looking-glass. The OG SoCal rave turns 30 this weekend, making it the longest-running electronic musical festival in North America, and is presented by Insomniac, the global leader in electronic dance music events. Its regular attendees will tell you they keep coming back for a big reason: it’s a sanctuary for Peace, Love, Unity and Respect, the foundational doctrine of electronic music culture.
Galantis performs at EDC Orlando (Courtesy of EDC Orlando)
“I always love playing in LA; it’s my second home, and there’s nowhere else quite like Nocturnal Wonderland,” Galantis, who played in 2015 and is returning this year, tells LA Weekly. “It’s got its own very unique vibe! The atmosphere is so special — people are really coming together at this festival, and Pasquale [Rotella, Insomniac founder] sure knows how to throw a serious party!!”
For his set this year, the celebrated Swedish producer and DJ says festivalgoers can expect “high-boost energy, pure, raw, uncut happiness mixed with classic, zesty house flavors, and some brand-new, unreleased Galantis sprinkled on top,” he said, asking, “You ready?”
House music legend Donald Glaude holds the record of most appearances at Nocturnal Wonderland, performing in 2001, ‘04, ‘05, ‘09, ‘10, ‘14, ‘15, ‘23, and returning this year.
He’s racked up many fond memories across his eight appearances so far, but his current favorites are from his most recent — “It was beyond amazing. Just the way the crowd showed up from nowhere, and my partner got to experience all the thrills and chills with me. She got to see me play this proper event that means so much to me,” says Glaude. He promises that for his 2025 set, he won’t be taking the opportunity for granted.
Insomniac won’t be either. For their milestone this weekend, Nocturnal Wonderland’s mantra will be “30 Years of Dancing in the Dark” which will be highlighted with lit up installations, art and creatures, and over 100 artists from a wide range of genres, including: ARMNHMR, Axwell, Benny Benassi, Eric Prydz, Harvard Bass, Infected Mushroom, Oliver Heldens, Seven Lions, Waxtroda (Matroda B2B Wax Motif), Zedd, Jessica Audiffred B2B Riot Ten, Wooli, AC Slater B2B Tchami, Skream, TheConnect B2B Skonka, Trice and CoolHandLuke.
Donald Glaude performs at Nocturnal Wonderland in 2023 (Courtesy of Insomniac)
There will be five stages, and new stage names this year: “Mystic Wild,” previously “Wolves Den;” “Dawn Mountain” (hosted by Bassrush), previously “Labyrinth” (hosted by Bassrush); “Aurora Plains” (hosted by Insomniac Records), previously “Sunken Garden” (hosted by Insomniac Records); “Rave Cave” and “Beatbox Art Car,” plus art installations and performers like dancing forest nymphs and creatures of all kinds.
Nocturnal Wonderland started in the LA underground scene as a one-night event held in a downtown warehouse in February 1995, hosted by the now-ubiquitous music events outfit Insomniac, just two years after its founder Pasquale Rotella started the company. “Wonderland” draws from Alice in Wonderland, with the first events pulling inspiration and imagery from the Lewis Carroll classic.
The 1995 edition leaned heavily into the Alice-ness of it all, with the front of the flyer superimposing the party name over the illustration “A Mad Tea-Party” by Greg Hildebrandt, and the back noting “Your Host for the night: Chesire Cat,” the “Queen & King of Hearts Thrown,” a “Tweedledee & Tweedledum’s Playhouse,” with info hotlines called “Tea Party Lines.” It ends with Rotella’s trademark invitation: “Come in Peace or Don’t come at all,” ensuring PLUR was baked in from the jump. Production was modest, holding to the DIY aesthetic of the rave scene of the time.
The event moved to The Shrine in ‘96, inviting ravers to a “Strange and Wondrous land…” reminding them to bring their “drums, whistles, candy, stuffed animals, smiles, glowsticks & nice things to share.”
In 1997, the fest encountered challenges when they switched venues at the last minute to Native American tribal land, where some tribe members didn’t get paid. What ensued is the stuff of rave lore, with EDM Identity reporting that “local tribe members set up a barbed-wire fence and guarded the gate entrance with guns in an effort to keep the 20,000 expected attendees out. Their efforts ultimately failed with ravers forcing the front gate open with a car, which then gave everyone a path to rush the fenced gate.”
Things went smoother in subsequent years. In 1998, the event moved to NOS Events Center in San Bernardino, which became a more stable, recurring venue, gradually attracting a larger fanbase, bigger DJs, and improvements in sound and lighting.
The festival became a two-day affair in 2011, and made a permanent landing at Glen Helen Regional Park in San Bernardino in 2013 — a wide, beautiful park that feels like a campground.
Fittingly, Wonderland is now primarily a camping festival, similar to Lightning in a Bottle or Burning Man, which lends itself to a communal atmosphere that multiplies camaraderie and smiles, and has solidified its reputation as a modern PLUR refuge, in keeping with the principles it set 30 years ago.
Glen Helen is one of the favorite venues of dedicated SoCal ravers, with the only drawback festival goers note being the traffic — so if you’re going this weekend, plan to add an hour or two to the commute if you’re coming and going in peak hours, or go and leave early to avoid a jam.
2023 (Photo: Keiki-Lani Knudsen for Insomniac Events)
Over the years, the theme has also evolved from Alice in Wonderland (which has now become the theme of sister festival Beyond Wonderland) into one that celebrates neon nocturnal creatures — think frogs and gnomes and mushrooms.
While the fest caters to ravers with wide and refined palates in search of more intimate performances, it’s had no shortage of mega stars throughout the years, including Armin van Buuren (who performed in 2015), Avicii (2011), The Chemical Brothers (2007), David Guetta (2015), Dillon Francis (2022, 2017), Illenium (2016, 2018, 2018, 2022), Kaskade (2004, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2015), Martin Garrix (2014), ODESZA (2016), Paul van Dyk (2003, 2007), SLANDER (2014, 2015, 2018), Subtronics (2019, 2023) and Tiësto (2001).
“I love everything about playing Nocturnal … I love EVERYTHING about it,” says Donald Glaude.
For many of the 80,000 ravers who will be dancing between the two days this weekend — a large chunk of whom are repeat attendees — it’s a sentiment they wholeheartedly share.
For more information on this weekend’s Nocturnal Wonderland, visit nocturnalwonderland.com and follow on Instagram at @nocturnalwland
Nocturnal Wonderland in 2015 on the September 12, 2025 cover of LA Weekly (Photo: Marc van der Aa for Insomniac Events; Cover design: Mark Stefanos)