In this post, I will be concluding the discussion about The Undecided Who’s current concept and branding.

From the social media minor task posts relating to branding:

The creation of the logo was carried out in several stages. I analyzed a series of recurring motifs in the band’s aesthetic (eye, shovel, key, circus, cabaret, chaos, etc.), which I attempted to transform into symbols. This process resulted in multiple sketches that were put to a vote within the band. Around the most-voted sketch, I built the final product, adding elements that reflect the band’s character: the fluidity of the incorporated styles (jazz/punk/rock…), the “indecisiveness” that also appears in the band’s name, as well as the existence of a common core that ties all these elements together (the circle at the center of the logo).

The concept and title for the upcoming show is “Near-Death Experience”. This was chosen to very vaguely align with the concept of our upcoming album, which I can’t yet reveal, but, in a way, this is the beginning of the end of our “cover band” era. New original songs will be played, replacing some of the covers from our past setlists. So, how can our marketing for the show reflect this?

From digipak introduction post

The upcoming album will be titled “Death is a City”, with the concept of “What if after death, we all just went to one city?” This explores death as the great equaliser, and also the intersection of countless people who lived in different eras coming together, in this specific case the different characters in the band coming together to make music in this city.

From digipak brainstorming post

Since I now have a vague storyline for the major task music video, which will be partially shot in the same location (see major task research posts), I have decided that the location will officially be placed somewhere at the entrance to the city of death, serving as a sort of waiting room.

The band will essentially be acting as psychopomps (From Wikipedia: Psychopomps (from the Greek word ψυχοπομπός, psychopompós, literally meaning the ‘guide of souls’)^[1] are creatures, spirits, angels, demons, or deities in many religions whose responsibility is to escort newly deceased souls from Earth to the afterlife.) that guide the recently deceased protagonist of the major task music video into the city through songs and games.

This works great as the setting for the album cover picture, essentially as a gateway into the city, the world the songs of album are set in.

The importance of having a solid concept and consistent branding

Branding defines your identity and builds recognition. This is done through consistent visual elements and messaging, building trust with audiences and providing a foundation for all marketing materials. A well-established brand can build emotional connections creating a loyal audience that is invested in your values and story, as well as your live shows and albums.

In the past, the studio system constructed celebrity identities as “brand identities” to frame audience expectations and protect box office earnings. Bosses used strict contracts to control star behavior and worked with gossip columns to either promote a curated persona or suppress scandals that might damage the brand. Nowadays, Clay Shirky argues that the traditional audience has evolved into a prosumer audience, one that has the expectation to be able to interact with the content they are consuming. Shirky also argues for the democratic nature of new media, observing that media corporations are losing their monopoly over the creation and distribution of media products to prosumers, and many famous people now are independent of corporations. In the same sense, brands have evolved from those curated by teams of people to more authentic, self-made brands over the years.

As a small band, the expectations for flawless branding are not that high, but it is proven that a solid brand can elevate a project like this, take it to the next level. So, I discussed with my colleagues to find a few keywords to represent The Undecided Who’s brand.

The Undecided Who : band concept

Keywords: Cabaret, Punk

Atmosphere: Fun, Chaotic

Colour Palette: Black and red, dark colours

Stage Attire: Maximalist clothing, bold makeup, gothic and circus style

Death is a City : album concept

Visuals: Desaturated, cluttered and messy

Symbolism: Circus, death, bars/clubs

Message: Death as the great equaliser

From now on, we can go forward considering this brand, to make every music video, photoshoot and marketing campaign cohesive, and build a strong identity both online and in our local community.