Imagine hearing this on a Sunday morning, coming out of your East Village apartment window in the early 1980s. Beautiful.
These two clips are from the documentary, Nomi Song. It's a wonderful document about this fascinating man and the people who crafted his shows and wardrobe.
Check out Klaus' tux blazer and costumes (very Margiela, very Victor and Rolf). It perfectly captures the drama and theatrics of Klaus' live shows.
It's too bad his records aren't amazing like his original live shows. I sort of wished he kept his band instead of caving into what record execs wanted.
The London Teddy boys and girls movement is pre-mod from the 1950s, but captures a similar cool and great style coming from British youth. These are some rare images shot by Ken Russel.
Here is a fantastic article about my current obsession since the Proenza Spring 2009 show. Is anyone else really interested in this history/background stuff or is it just me?
I haven't really seen anyone wearing Yoko/Lennon's (as my friends like to call them). Here in SF, people are still into Wayfarer, but in a 60's mod style with blue tinted lenses and tortoiseshell frames. Perhaps I will see more round shapes later on when our "indian summer" hits. Nevertheless, I'm probably going to be wearing mine long after people move on to the next trend (Yoko Ono has been wearing them since the 1970s, why shouldn't I continue?)
On a side note, I've been returning to Yoko Ono's records lately and this image from the cover of her Seasons of Glass record popped up in my mind. It was the record she recorded after her husband's death and it is one of the most powerful statements I have heard about loosing those closest to you (yes, they are the glasses he wore when he was shot. Yes, that is his blood).
Music lovers say, "I respect Yoko Ono because John Lennon loved her so much but I still blame her for breaking up the Beatles." Let's be honest here, they had a far longer run then most bands and they decided they wanted to do other things. It was 1970 and people still had some seriously deep-seeded racism about interracial couples and sexism against women who "destroy men's creativity." That is where it really comes from.
I think people underestimate her as an artist and as a musician. Yoko Ono was an artist before they met, and certainly a good one. This album is a beautiful and powerful testament of her love and loss.
A mixture of no wave, jazz, funk, rasta dub, punk rock and the mad rantings of lead, Mark Stewart, the Pop Group is a part of many essentials in the post-punk genre.
This is one of my favorites from them (via Waves at Night)
Why is all the shopping so much better outside of SF? M and I were talking about saving up for some serious, serious clothing investing and traveling. Either NYC or down in LA. We would definitely hit up Endovanera if it was to LA.
In anticipation of Men's Fashion Week later this month, here are more favorites from fall:
Band of Outsiders
So obviously Scott Sternberg is as big a Godard fan as I am. His line is named after one of his films and this season's line was inspired by Godard's political extremist period during the late 1960s-early 1970s. I think La Chinoise is one of Godard's most stylized films. Heavy saturation of his signature white, red, blue and yellow are present as well as the coolest looking apartment with the wackiest bunch of leftists roommates.
Most of the men in my life dress like they lived in 1967, and most of them like Band of Outsiders. You could understand why.
Raf Simons
Look at those gloves!
There is something really sinister about a guy in a suit. Maybe I've got the book American Psycho in mind when I'm looking at Raf Simon's work (the book was far more disturbing compared to the movie). Nonetheless, these gentlemen look beautiful.
Number (N)ine
Everyone under the sun has posted Number (N)ine. Yes, it is that good.
Takahiro Miyashita loves punk and grunge looks, but he managed to make it look romantic and very gentle without loosing a sense of masculinity.
I think Miyashita is one of a few designers whose record collections I would actually like to scope out.
images from style.com, movie still from city-slick
