KIRBY COOK

Reimagined: Austin and the Powers

Reimagining a band logo

[Disclaimer: Beyond being a fan myself, I am in no way affiliated with Austin and the Powers and have not incorporated any imagery that belongs to the band into this site. The following is a write-up of a design exercise done for fun and the ADV 490 Digital Portfolio class.]

As a new indie band, Austin and the Powers combine pop rock with funky upbeat melodies for lifting any mood. With beachy Panic! at the Disco vibes, the Pennsylvania band has released six singles online (plus one feature with Breadbox and Paige VanSickle covering TLC's "No Scrubs") and have 82,647 monthly Spotify listeners (as of April 25, 2023). Although the band currently has a logo that is reminiscent of Austin Powers with its groovy typeface and colorful shades, I thought it would be a fun exercise to design a new logo that steps away from the vibes of the band's spy affiliation and 70s influence.

Brainstorming

With logo work, I prefer to start drawing freehand on my iPad with my Apple Pencil, so I did the same thing by writing out the band's name and going from there. I'm a fan of handwritten work in digital medium and enjoy that moment of did someone draw that or is it a typeface?

With the band's playful and positive sound, I wanted to capture some elements of those sounds sans spy genre. As one of the band's 82,647 monthly listeners, I'm familiar with their sound. After a quick review of their socials (e.g., Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube), I brainstormed some small adjustments to play with the letters.

The Reimagined Logo...

There's something dynamic about the band's sounds. Maybe it's me already missing Panic! at the Disco after their untimely end earlier this year, but Austin, Nick, Colin, and Taylor somehow make you want to bob your head to their music with their catchy tunes. Subtle additions such as the lightning strike and star add in fun elements to a square icon that can easily be adapted for social media, flyers, and merchandise.

...and the new color palette.

With the band's catchy indie tunes, Austin and the Powers exhibit a sense of upbeat energy, and naturally, the band needs a color palette that embodies all of these qualities. Drawing inspiration from the band's current logo, I wanted to add energy into the overall palette. As a fan of black and white, I consider these colors to be a given for any brand (ha!), but four additional colors to mix in: an electric purple, bright blue, bright red, and energizing yellow. I can imagine the refreshed logos on merchandise, prints, etc.!

Cover Artwork Refresh

With their indie pop rock vibes, I wanted to bring in clean yet modern lines, typeface, and playful colors to refreshed covers for the band's digital singles. Paying homage to the original artwork, I incorporated some of the concepts into an updated look. As a band with a growing online presence and active socials, I felt that each digital single should play into the band's catchy and fun vibes while showing a vibrancy that comes through in their music. With their new logo in black nestled in the corner, the digital covers let the playfulness of the band to come through in a colorful yet consistent way.