Heavy Metal Type — Sergio Trujillo
Channel: TypeCon
Date: 2019-03-12

Recorded during TypeCon2018: Xx in Portland, Oregon

The graphic imagery featured on the cover of heavy metal albums (specifically in regards of letterform design) couldn’t be further from the principles and conventions that typographers and type designers abide by. Characters are bent, twisted, combined, and get more and more distorted the heavier the music gets. As a consequence, precepts as balance, rhythm, and legibility are discarded in service of originality and graphic impact.

This talk will serve as a historical and graphical tour throughout the enormous creative playground that heavy metal has allowed for. Beginning with the precursors of this music genre (whose artwork was influenced by the psychedelic movement of the 60’s), going through the bands that popularized it (with logotypes that are inspired by or directly taken from gothic calligraphic models), and finishing with the metalheads that are taking both the music and the imagery that accompanies it to the extreme (showcasing the work of graphic artist Christophe Szpajdel).

In spite of the graphic differences between traditional typeface design (or even lettering) and heavy metal logo design, the advent of a new font format might have brought this two worlds closer together. Perhaps variable fonts could serve as the entry gate to the gothic underworld of heavy metal type, with design proposals that change and react to the music itself, providing a plethora of hauntingly beautiful possibilities.