Organisers behind beloved Sydney boutique festival OutsideIn have taken to Facebook to address similarities between their own logo and that of Fuzzy’s newly announced “touring party”, Listen Out.
As you can see in the below image, the resemblance is quite similar and, as both festivals’ mission statements focus on the same niche ‘better, not bigger’ ethos, it’s a particularly awkward situation. Needless to say, the OutsideIn cats aren’t too pleased with competitors’ graphic design offering.
Not only has OutsideIn slammed Fuzzy for “blatantly ripping off” the logo, they’ve also taken a swipe at the tour organisers’ motives for cancelling Parklife in favour of Listen Out:
“If you think that copying a logo and rebranding your festival is enough to win over fans then you’re sadly mistaken. Our fans know good music. At the end of the day we are confident that it’s what will always keep us a step ahead of the others no matter what sort of brand or name is thrown behind it.”
In the full statement from the team, which you can read below, it’s also indicated that OutsideIn have decided to delay their line up announcement as a direct result of the “media mess” they expect to blossom from this little situation.
Fuzzy is yet to respond. Check out the logos below.
UPDATE: Fuzzy has now issued a public response. Speaking to theMusic.com.au, Fuzzy Director John Wall played down any talk that they had malicious intentions when they designed their logo. Both statements can be found below.
OutsideIn statement re: Listen Out Festival
“OutsideIn was started as an avenue to promote quality underground electronic music to Sydney and beyond. We’ve put in hours upon hours of work into our brand and developing an event that we as music lovers could be proud of.
We are all for competition and companies bringing out new, interesting artists because at the end of the day why we do this is for the love of music. And this is just another opportunity for us to see some more of the artists we love. We’d rather people bring out these sort of artists than the same recycled acts year in and year out. It goes back to why we essentially started OutsideIn.
To see others now blatantly rip off what we’re trying to do is not just an insult to us but more so an insult to the intelligence of patrons and music lovers alike. If you think that copying a logo and rebranding your festival is enough to win over fans then you’re sadly mistaken. Our fans know good music. At the end of the day we are confident that it’s what will always keep us a step ahead of the others no matter what sort of brand or name is thrown behind it.
We will be delaying our announcement so we don’t get caught up in the media mess that will eventuate over the next week but rest assured, we will be delivering a product to the best we can for you guys early next week. This has been a tireless effort from all our ends and united with our amazing fans we will return bigger and better this year. Don’t follow imitation, we got you.
Love,
The OutsideIn Family x”
Adding: “We will be delaying our announcement so we don’t get caught up in the media mess that will eventuate over the next week but rest assured, we will be delivering a product to the best we can for you guys early next week. This has been a tireless effort from all our ends and united with our amazing fans we will return bigger and better this year. Don’t follow imitation, we got you.”
Fuzzy statement re: Listen Out Festival
“I hope you realise, and I mean surely you realise, that there’s no way we’d go out with the intention of harming anyone else or their event/business with anything we do. I don’t think that what we are planning with Listen Out is actually anything much like what you are doing with Outside In, and I’d say that will become very clear once we announce line-up on friday.
“Our logo was designed only with reference to our own Parklife logo, we certainly didn’t look at yours. Clearly there’s no benefit [for] us to have a logo that’s similar to anyone else’s and again surely you understand that we’d never set out to make a logo similar to another existing one.
“We have been doing house music events with music that we like since 1996 and what we’re doing is more of that – Listen Out will be extremely similar musically and organisationally to Harbourlife, which I guess you know started in 2003.
“We had no idea you were planning an announcement around now – in general we try to avoid announcing too close to anything else similar.
“So now I have to respond publicly and I don’t want to get involved in a slanging match – I respect what you do and have no intention of trying to undermine you. But I’m going to have to point out that our new event is along the same musical lines of a lot of things we’ve been doing for over 15 years.
“I hope that the anger you’re feeling because someone shit-stirred by comparing the logo doesn’t make you unable to take what I’m saying as a honest and genuine.”
(Via TheMusic.com.au)
