Dub From The Ruins
Logo + sleeve art
Dystopian vibes for a record label’s first release.
Services provided:
— Logo design
— Illustration
— Sleeve + label design
— Animation
A clear vision
We kicked the job off with an immersion session in which my client detailed his brand vision:
Steppas dub reggae soundsystem music born on an apocalyptic doomsday, forged from a backlash to oppression and echoed through the rubble of torn buildings. The sound system will survive after all other systems have shattered and will emerge from the rubble as a calling — dub from the ruins.
The scene was set. A completely monochrome aesthetic was stipulated to emphasise the lo-fi, analogue, dystopian vision.
The logo
A logo that could be stencilled seemed appropriate so I arranged the letters of DUBFTR (FTR also being shorthand for Future) in a closely tessellating group which evolved into the finished logo. I also created the custom stencil font which appears in the Lockup and Wide versions.
Four logos were created:
— Square
— Square Lockup
— Square Stencil
— Wide
Sleeve design and illustration
The logo, represented as a bombed-out building, dominates the front cover illustration. The army truck, central to the brand, also makes an appearance.
The back cover also features a prominent logo plus a pair of bass pins for some lo-fi analogue flavour.
Centre labels
The centre labels feature the silhouette of a city skyline reflected in water. The eagle-eyed will spot that the skyline itself is in ruins while the reflection isn’t — a reminder of a peaceful past.
The reflected silhouette also resembles a sound signature seen on spectrum analysers (a graphic equaliser display to you and me).
Promo animation
A promo animation was produced and shared across social media for the label launch and first release.
