When Hot&Heavy — an event series that hosts intimate underground house music shows — approached us, they were still in a pre-launch stage. While they had a general sense of what they wanted their brand to convey, they hadn’t yet formally defined it. Hot&Heavy came to us looking for a partner that could not only help them craft their visual brand, but also assist them in establishing their overall positioning.

Beyond simply attracting an audience, Hot&Heavy’s goal was to attract the right audience — a group of music lovers who weren’t just there to party while DJs performed in the background, but rather to deeply appreciate the music and experience while building community. To make sure that Hot&Heavy truly connected with their target audience, we knew we had to create a brand identity that accurately reflected who they were.

We drew inspiration from retro visuals and their DIY vibe to create a brand identity with a lo-fi aesthetic. We chose a dual-toned serif typeface for their logo that had a vintage feel to it which, when combined with overexposed images and flashy bursts, brought to mind the days of handmade Xerox garage show flyers. Because their team was small and scrappy, we created a number of different design elements that could quickly and easily be assembled to create different assets like posters, stickers, social media graphics, and more. In addition to designing marketing materials, we also assisted with event design, bringing in soft red lighting, candles, and velour to create an environment that gave off a warm but mysterious aura.

Over time, Hot&Heavy has managed to carve out a niche within the house community, with a number of successful events under their belt and more on the way as they expand — but one thing that remains consistent is the branding that helped them build their following.

November 2019

Role: Creative direction, brand identity, print collateral, environmental design