AOL’s Spinner has a Top 25 posted for “the best band logos,” reminding us that “a band’s logo can be just as memorable as its biggest single.” (You know they had Jamiroquai in mind when they wrote that. Maybe.) The countdown beings with our favorite leathery (in all senses) Queens punkers the Ramones:
25 Ramones
24 Nine Inch Nails
23 Public Enemy
22 Korn
21 Aerosmith
Ramones, NIN, PE … Korn beat you. Top 20 after the jump.
20 Black Flag
19 Phish
18 H.I.M.
17 The Beatles
16 Bauhaus
15 The Cramps
14 Metallica
13 ABBA
12 Wu-Tang Clang
11 Queen
10 Van Halen
09 The Misfits
08 The Grateful Dead
07 Scissor Sisters
06 AC/DC
05 The Who04 Kiss
03 Yes
02 The Rolling Stones
01 Prince
We can live with Prince. But wait, H.I.M.’s better than Black Flag’s Pettibon design? W.T.F. Scissor Sisters over Metallica and Van Halen? Calm down, Diamond Dave, they have a guy named Jake Shears after all — we’re talking iconic top to bottom! Oh right, you have two guys named Van Halen. There are more holes in this thing than the Anal Cunt logo. Speaking of which: How’d that get left off? And, uh, Dead Kennedys? Motörhead? Maiden? New Kids On The Block? Graphic designers, you’ll want to peep the list with accompanying blurbs and imagery here. (Come to think of it, AOL has a pretty cool logo.) And, if you want to extend the logo love beyond a top 25, check out Pictograms, a blog that highlights cool band logos.
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Radiohead bear anyone?
how kanye’s teddy bear not gonna be aol’s top logo.
if kanye doesn’t win aol loses.
scissor sister?! and right above the grateful dead no less. real classy.
i have never seen that “yes” logo before in my life. yeah, i’m only 24, but um… wow this list is irrelevant…
i don’t see MXPX on here.
I wonder how Kiss and Yes came up with the idea to spell their names out in 70s fonts for their logos. Genius! Why aren’t they 1 and 2?
This guy’s got a whole blog devoted to logos: http://pictograms.blogspot.com/
No Crass? No PiL? No Love and Rockets?
Black Flag? Alkaline Trio? Radiohead? The Specials? Weezer?
Weak.
I like how the one that is obviously number 1 is at the bottom of the list at 25.
What about NOFX or Pennywise?
Does the band’s name in the best known font really count as a logo? I mean, you see the Black Flag or DK logo and you know who that band is. Same for Weezer or the Stones. You have to read “KISS” or “YES” to know that it’s Kiss or Yes. This is a dumb list anyway.
Wow, I usually just judge a band by their music. How silly of me.
I should mention I’m not hating on graphic designers there. I studied graphic design for three years, I understand a lot of work goes into designing a logo. I’m just saying. I mean, come on. I consider the logo to be about as important as how hot the lead singer is. And fyi, I don’t actually care about the lead singer’s looks at all.
No Black Metal bands?
Jeff beat me too it, from home nonetheless. Band names in appealing, bold fonts don’t count. They should certainly be given a much credit as logos as achievements in graphic design (except Korn and ABBA. fuck you, turning one letter around doesn’t merit anything) but its not a logo. Screw you AOL.
Air. Devo.
i think the wish and kiss mex3 era cure logos should be on there.
new york dolls lipstick logo.
the einsteurzende neubauten mensch.
@ people complaining that Weezer isn’t on the list: look at #10. That’d just make it redundant.
The Radiohead bear and the Black Flag “flag” are the most glaring absences, in my opinion.
Yeah, I was gonna say the Neubauten dude, too. And the Black Flag and DK logos are classic. And Jamie Reid’s ransom-note Sex Pistols logo? Practically defined punk-rock typography. (Although I seem to recall that he didn’t design it singlehandedly. I’ll look into it.)
Actually, Blag Flag is number 20, for all of you who have been complaining of its absence (including myself, ha ha).
Wu-Tang Clan definitely has the number one most recognizable logo.
What is the scissor sisters logo anyway? I have no clue.
#1 Sex Pistols
#2 Wu-Tang Clan
#3 Ramones
Do any bands from the last 5 years (besides the — cough — Scissor Sisters) even have a logo?
yes, the strokes.
This is silly. Johnnyboy is silly too. It’s right there at number 20. LOL. Clack Fad is super awesome. All the popular boyz at my skool are ttly into them. 8 above the Woo Tang CLANG. Right where they belong, so all 9 members can run trains on Dez Cadena for leaving them.
L7
No 5ive?
Blasphemy.
cross is the best logo in history.
yes? the biggest wtf. The who can be, or bauhaus
Not suggesting these are better than those on the list, but some contemporary artists with consistent branding include:
the Killers
Rooney
Eisley
Common
the Zutons
Muse
Oasis
311
hate away…
how did they decide between Kiss’ ‘logo’ and Slayers?
Yes! Abba! I’m satisfied.
But where’s A.C.?
Yes! Abba! I’m satisfied.
But where’s A.C.?
Guns N Roses? HELL-o!
This list is perfect.
2Pac, The Cure, the stooges.
It’s a crime that PIL was not included on this list. The PIL logo was ubiquitous when I was in high school.
you know, you do see the 311 logo everywhere
MXPX! ha. that’s rich. what a kidder.
I can still remember mindless stoned hours spent doodling some of these on my chucks and school folders when I should have been learning. Ah High School, I may not remember a damn thing about algebra or chemistry but I did perfect the Pearl Jam Alive guy so there?s always that to fall back on when my standard bullshit corporate America cube dweller job lays me off.
where’s pitchshifter’s logo?
f*cking a$$holes
Minor Threat…
no led zep? this list’s a joke
My cousin has a band with an awesome logo. Why didn’t they make the list. Their logo is certainly better than Yes’s.
WTF?
You did NOT just name drop the band Anal Cunt. I thought I was the only person to still have their music on my itunes. Ha! You just made my day!
no chili peppers?
X I}
X l
that’s supposed to be nirvana
no White Stripes peppermint stripe? Yes, it’s not solely used as their logo, but it’s very iconic…
Missing:
Radiohead, Kanye West, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alkaline Trio, Hot Water Music, Led Zeppelin, Oasis, Nirvana, Slipknot (yes, much better than some of those included on the list even if I’m not a fan), Massive Attack, Foo Fighters, Bad Religion (in my book, the best band logo there is), Anti-Flag…
Off of the top of my head. Which makes that list kind of…really awful.
When’s the last time you had an original thought? You rag on everybody’s lists but never come up with anything decent of your own. blah blah blah you hate another list. get over yourselves and come up with something on your own if you don’t like it…oh wait, you just post videos and press release rewrites all day. I forgot. my bad.
Whoa, Bauhaus? Random but awesome.
im frankly shocked that noone has mentioned the daft punk logo yet.
What!? No Twisted Sister? I used to love the TS done in bones. I inscribed it on all my high school binders. But now I’ve just dated myself
while not a chart topper like a lot of these bands, in my humble opinion, rocket from the crypt has the best logo of all rock n roll. pushead did an amazing rocket, yeah, you guessed it, that looks like a crypt. eh, what do i know. that or mxpx….
Black Bands ?
There isn’t ONE which have a logo worth noting, let alone even a passable one
This isn’t political correctness where utter sh*te is fawned over just because it’s done by black/muslim/gay/lesbian you know
The quality of a logo should make it noteworthy.
The Yes and Rolling Stones ones are far and away superior to any other.
(And Yes’s original speech bubble logo is better than all the others too)
Strange that 90% of the best ones are British isnt it ?
what’s with the Jamiroquai diss? They aren’t one hit wonders, at least not in the states – you guys just can’t appreciate good music -.-