Garrett revisits the Buzzcocks

Malcolm Garrett is reviving and updating his iconic logo for punk band Buzzcocks, creating a logo and visuals for a projection display to be used on the band’s 30th anniversary tour.

For the multimedia presentation, Garrett has collated images of designs that have appeared on promotional material, such as record sleeves and song sheets, as well as pictures of the band.
 
The anniversary logo features three Zs instead of the original two, in front of the number 30. It aims to reflect the band’s 30-year history and is a ‘witty take on the original’, says Garrett, who is now associate creative director at Applied Information Group.

‘There are so many 30th anniversaries at the moment, such as the Sex Pistols, and we thought we’d better have a 30th anniversary logo for Buzzcocks,’ he adds. We decided on a projection with images and contacted everyone involved over the years. We wanted it to be nostalgic in the right way, with some things people would have seen and some they wouldn’t.’

Garrett designed the original Buzzcocks logo early in 1977 and went on to work with the band for several years throughout its career, creating visuals for promotional material. Inspiration for the logotype came from the sound of the music and Garrett says he wanted to create something ‘fast and edgy, distinctive and classic, and a little bit unhinged’.