In a flurry of current nostalgia for the heyday of ‘indie sleaze’, it appears fitting that one particular of London’s most well known epicentres of that eyeliner-laden, American Apparel-bedecked ‘scene’ has just reopened: Koko.
The Camden dwell tunes location and nightspot, at the time identified as the Camden Palace and dwelling to indie clubbers throughout the mid-00s, has been through a £70-million restoration (the website burned down in January 2020 adhering to its closure in 2019, and reports of asbestos and other structural complications) and as aspect of this, new branding has been designed by company DixonBaxi.
The ‘rebirthed’ venue, dubbed ‘Koko 2.0’, includes a 50,000-sq.-foot arts and audio location and world audio platform launching in partnership with material enterprise Sister. The restored quality II detailed theatre characteristics a new 360-diploma stage and superior-spec broadcasting, recording and stay streaming abilities.
DixonBaxi was introduced in to generate branding to be made use of throughout all venue touchpoints and its digital system. The company worked with venue proprietor Olly Bengough to create the system, aiming to build a model that “functions as a stage for the world’s major musical functions while continuously celebrating the importance of rising artists”, states DixonBaxi.
The id technique is created all around the principle, ‘Countdown to live’, which seems to distil “the notion of bottling the anticipation, electricity, knowledge and thrill distinctive to dwell events”, states DixonBaxi.
The new glimpse is inspired by “symbols of radical change”, with a basic wordmark fashioned of the K and O of the brand’s title to make a “timeless and classic” glimpse. According to DixonBaxi, the brand “embodies Koko’s relentless determination to are living songs and their transformation of the dwell experience” as “a mark that embodies the unbridled passion, camaraderie and pleasure of thrilling stay times although standing for the legacy of a single of London’s only independent cultural venues”.
The brand has been intended to get the job done in movement, once again looking to express a feeling of energy and anticipation. It has also been utilized as a ‘cinematic countdown,’ with parts of the symbol progressively unveiled until the whole mark is obvious with beams of the brand’s purple color flashing as it ticks. Each and every of the Koko subbrands, which include Koko Shop and Koko Radio, have their personal logos to emphasize their distinctive character while also seamlessly fitting into the main visible identity program.
The shiny red brand name colour was picked out as it both of those signifies the venue’s historical past and its famed pink interiors, and conveys Koko’s “breed of electricity and lively attitude”. DixonBaxi also made a new model typeface, Wallop, a sans serif which is intentionally cleanse and minimum in buy to do the job throughout all genres and sense confident and timeless, even though also “cutting through the noise”.
Since Koko now acts as both equally are living venue and a system that can stream globally, DixonBaxi suggests that it was significant the manufacturer underscored this plan of a “democratised audio platform” underpinned by a mix of exploring new acts, large names and “unparalleled industry knowledge”. The company provides: “It’s a new way to knowledge reside Koko functions from any place in the world, which is why preserving the feeling of are living live shows was an integral component of the project each individual element of the brand name is built to truly feel dwell.”