Better Logo?

I was thinking about band logos a littlelast night. It dawned on me that 80s Glam bands had some of the best logos of all musicians. I don't know if it was the Metal, the time period or just a fluke - but it just doesn't seem like modern bands/artists have impressive logos.

That said, I've been trying to determine which Glam band has the single best logo. (Notice I say Glam. If I just said "best rock logo" I'd easily pick Aerosmith). Of course, such decisions are subjective but I think I've got it narrowed down to two bands: Def Leppard and Crashdiet. Now, I know there is some (small) debate over Def Leppard's Glam status. I consider them 100% Glam because of their hugely popular 80s sound and influence on other bands.

Anyway, I can't think of a Glam band that has a more recognizable logo than Def Leppard. I mean, their brand image is instantly recognizable which is hugely important in today's over-saturated music market. Having a great logo didn't help Def Leppard create a great album in Songs from the Sparkle Lounge but I bet it did help sell a few extra shirts during the recent tour. I have several Def Lep shirts - all because of the awesome logo.

From the modern era of Glam, there really is no contest when it comes to logos: Crashdiet takes the cake. In a lot of ways, the Crashdiet logo is very similar to Def Leppard's brand. There are hard-shaped letters, smushed together in just the right way to create a brand synonymous with a certain type of music. While I often think of Glam as "inclusive welcome-to-the-party Metal" the logos of both Crashdiet and Def Leppard juxtapose this idea. The hard edges of the letters symbolize the danger of Metal - the closeness of the letters welcome listeners to the fun. I highly doubt the band members had such symbolism in mind when the logos were originally created - but it's possible such ideas were subconscious.

So, which logo is better: Def Leppard of Crashdiet...or some other band? Why?

Comments

[don]

i never have really cared about the logo unless it was unreadable. it's never made me buy a t-shirt at all so i guess i'll take your word for it.

[PlainJane]

This is a great post b/c I am SO into logos...it might not change my opinion of a band much at the end of the day, but it definitely may make me more likely to buy a t shirt. I'm with you on the choice of Def Leppard...BEST logo ever. It just works. Ratt has a pretty good one as well...

[Steffan Mock]

For me, my favorite logo would have to be Dokken's. The others are good but I just love Dokken's.

[NikkeSixx]

I think W.A.S.P. has the coolest logo ever.

[gerry g]

what about KISS???? they're great, but the best logo, by far, is ANGEL -- you can turn it upside down and it still says ANGEL ...

[tony]

I agree Def Leppard probably had the most recognizable of all, even to people who did not listen to glam but RATT, W.A.S.P. and DOKKEN were also great mentions. I also think POISON and Motley Crue (at times) had very cool logos. Helix, Krokus and KEEL could get honorable mention as well.

[stuff]

Iron Maiden's logo - not glam I know - is a classic

[Rufus]

Im suprised you didnt say Britney Spears's logo.

[John]

Cinderella has a great one as well

[Jay]

As an artist this post interests me on so many levels...I wanted to mention that Def Lep's logo also influenced so many other bands logos at that time...Look at Winger and Ratt...Good Job Ally!

[Ann]

They Aren't Glam, but I think AC/DC has the best most recognizable logo from the 80's.

[Martin]

When I look at Crashdiets logo I get the feeling they're a punkband, to me it looks more like a punklogo.
Their other logo that only contains a C and D looks alot like Dead Kennedys logo for that matter.

[MotleyCrue666]

Out of those i pick Crashdiets

but Motley Crue's logo with the dots over the o and u r amazing and easily recgnizable but Dokkens is also pretty great!

[Lucifer]

erm I know this is hardly logo related, but I need help.
Glam help!
I recently downloaded alot of Hanoi Rocks songs from Limewire (terrible i know, but I HAVE NO MONEY) and there was a song on there called beautiful girls that caught my attention. Now apparently, this song has never existed, by anyone, let alone hanoi rocks. Apart from the fact tha it very obviously does exist and is on my ipod, all other evidence goes to show that the song was never made. Does anyone know if it exists? And who was it by?

[Allyson]

Lucifer -

I'm not certain about the HR songs as I don't own a copy of "Beautiful Girls" but I do believe the song is on a greatest hits package - perhaps a Japanese release? The song is also online to stream legally here:
http://www.last.fm/music/Hanoi+Rocks/+charts

Of course, we all known Van Halen has a song called "Beautiful Girls" - not that there is a connection. Just throwing that out for fun.

- Allyson

[Xandra73]

In my opinion lots of bands have really nice and impressive logos. I agree, 80's glam bands had awesome logos, but I don't think they are the only ones. Two bands I love very much at the moment and who are not glam are Kamelot and Edguy - both have really creative and beautiful logos, check them out.

[jf]

gerry g's right...Angel's logo was, and is, the coolest :)

[Dezi Diamond]

http://myspace.com/scrittscrat

Ok so we're a 'bubblegum' sleazy though kinda Glam band. But check out the logo. What do you think? Would you buy a shirt? LOL They are available!

[Dezi Diamond]

http://myspace.com/scrittscrat

Ok..so we're a Glam/Pop/Punk band. Not really 'Metal' at all, but check out the logo. What do u think...would you buy a shirt? They're available!!! LOL

[Lucifer]

Thanks Allyson, not only did I confirm that hanoi Rocks did do beautiful girls (although for some reason apparently not released on any albums) that site is AWESOME. Cheers.