press release
CMT 'Pure Country'
Eyeball and Expansion Team Tapped for CMT's
Launch of 'Pure Country'
Extending A Creative Partnership with CMT for new Traditional Country Music Channel.
NEW YORK - Building on their award-winning relationship with Viacom's Country Music Television (CMT), boutique production house Eyeball and music company Expansion Team were enlisted to contribute their distinct flair to the launch of the Nashville-based-network's latest offering, CMT Pure Country.
In creating the initial identity for the fledgling Pure Country channel, the design collaboration furthered its creative and strategic partnership with CMT, producing a spectrum of work for the new channel that caters to "authentic" country music fans who enjoy traditional country sound. Forged from the images and sounds of Americana, the Pure Country package captures the essential roots and spirit of country offered by this novel approach to music television.
Drawing on the simple authenticity of country melodies, past and present, Eyeball and Expansion Team were dispatched to define the new channel's uncomplicated and traditional core offerings through the classic iconography of country music and culture, with a nod to progressive styles as well as the parent CMT brand. Creating this distinct yet related identity for Pure Country was challenging, especially considering the previous work done for the network.
"We had to visually solve the same challenge we faced with the earlier CMT music IDs, but it had to be a different vision," said Carlo Vega, senior designer at Eyeball. "It would have been easy to fall into a look and sensibility similar to the previously created IDs. Forgetting about the work, assets and research done for the past project was the really tough part."
It is this ability to create and inspire original work that keeps the collaboration between Eyeball and CMT moving forward."I can't think of a better example of art in marketing than the work that comes out of EyeballNYC, especially their latest work for CMT Pure Country, the latest digital [channel] from Country Music Television," said Michael Engleman, CMT's Director of Broadcast. "The EyeballNYC design team distilled the channel direction with a distinct aesthetic approach that sets the network apart from its competition."
Just as challenging as the visual aspects of the package was the creation of a music identity for a network that specializes in the same. The audio portion needed to seamlessly rub shoulders with the likes of legends Hank Williams Jr. and Reba MacIntyre, which is no small feat.
"The most challenging aspect of creating ID's is to fit a full musical idea into 10 seconds, while keeping all the richness and depth of a full song," said Alex Moulton, creative director at Expansion Team. "We wanted to slow things down, to pare back the musical elements in order to follow the simpler, slower animation. CMT was open to this view, and they let us take a large step toward a simpler, more effective approach to branding."
This built-up trust between Expansion Team and CMT helps to keep the work fresh and innovative.
"The music of Expansion Team is bold and authentic, a true reflection of Alex Moulton and his team," said CMT's Engleman. "From the outset of a project, Expansion Team creates a musical philosophy that perfectly matches the campaign's aesthetic goals, and inevitably they deliver a final product with a quality and inventiveness worth listening to on your car stereo."
