Stereosonic Focus On Festival Fashion
Words: Cyclone
The dance music festival is no longer just about catching hot DJs and live acts. It’s also a chance for girls and guys to dress up and parade. Trend-spotting – and people-watching – is all part of the entertainment. The dance scene especially has exerted a major influence on fashion in recent years. Remember the nu-rave look? And today music festival fashion is big business – just visit any high street retailer. English ‘It’ girl Alexa Chung has virtually turned the music fest into her personal runway, following Kate Moss.
Alexa Chung effortlessly bang on trend as per usual
Stylist and fashion writer Alyce Cowell knows all about it. As The Westfield Insider, her job is to blog about fashion and shopping – “on-trend, on-budget” buys – but she’s also a music (and festival) lover. “Festivals are a fashion playground and the perfect time to experiment with the season’s hottest trends,” she enthuses.
So what are this season’s key festival looks? “The trends for this Spring/Summer are perfect for festival season,” Alyce says. “Boho is back bigger than ever, so we can channel Woodstock all through summer with flowy maxi skirts and ethnic-inspired sandals. Safari-inspired pieces are also being worked into the mix. And colour-blocking will be the trend of the warmer months, which is fun for festivals and means you’ll never lose your friends!” A girl doesn’t have to spend a fortune to channel Alexa, either. “Thanks to ‘It’ girls like Alexa Chung, Kate Moss and Peaches Geldof, festival fashion is huge right now. They manage to look so effortlessly cool, on-trend and comfortable – and we want the same! These days we like to plan our festival looks in advance and mirror what’s hot around the world… Shoppers without the superstar budgets of these ‘It’ girls can still create an on-trend look simply by incorporating this season’s accessories – a brightly coloured pair of wedges will make any outfit pop, while a safari print scarf is a versatile item that can be taken from festivals to the office.” It’s about being “creative”, Alyce stresses.
Stereosonic 2011 has its share of creative fashionistos, as well as fashionistas, on stage.
If anyone has fashion cred, it’s Sydney’s Beni, a sometime member of Sydney’s Bang Gang and Riot In Belgium. His brother Dan Single is a co-founder of Ksubi, its jeans beloved by Soulwax. Beni lately debuted on Modular with the album House Of Beni, a romp through vintage disco, house, acid, electro and techno. He’s collaborated with The Presets’ Kim Moyes, plus vocalists like Sam Sparro. And this postmodern glamster has already been contemplating what he’ll wear at Stereosonic. “I’m in Tokyo right now, so I am shopping for the experience,” Beni announces. “Stereosonic is in summer, so [I'll be wearing] shorts, the world’s best T-shirt, some jewellery, and the dopest shoes.”
Melbourne’s Acid Jack, who contributed a booty-shaking mix to onelove’s Sonic Boom Box last summer, is suitably laconic when describing his garb. “I’m at a point in my life where I can’t face being out in public without a collared shirt, so for a big festival like Stereosonic that means at least a three-piece suit. The colour palette will most likely be bright yellows, cobalt blues and whites, with maybe a lipstick-pink shirt, and definitely offset with a fluro silk pocket square. I’ll try my best to look sharp, so I won’t forget cufflinks and tie pins. I think as an artist every time you perform in public it’s important you look committed and defined… I don’t really put much thought into it, though!”
Perth bass specialist ShockOne, too, has a unique take on colour-blocking. “The first thing I do is get a full stage and lighting plot and design lay-out of the stage I’m playing on so I can start work on a colour scheme for an outfit that will gel with the stage colours and lighting,” the DJ/producer jokes. “As they say, ‘Shoes maketh the man,’ so before any major touring festival I make sure I give myself some time for a quick jaunt over to Milan to see Alfonso my shoemaker – the man is an angel when it comes to shoes. Just last spring he put together some rabbit leather loafers for me. It’s like walking on a cloud in these things. This Stereosonic, I think I’ll focus on hues that were once accents – oranges, greens and mustard. This is deliberately antithetical to the nostalgia we’ve been seeing in seasons past. I’m not sure about using the word ‘flowing’ here, but that’s exactly what I want to go for. Expect big designer brands with longer, wider, and, yes, flowing shapes…” Boys!
Stereosonic’s local stars have their own fashion dos – and, significantly, don’ts. Says Beni, “No fluro and minimal tattoos for guys. For girls, underpants are a must! Any girls wearing a Lil Wayne or a Drake T-shirt, I will give them my rider.” Acid Jack, who just played Los Angeles’ Hard Summer Music Festival and will perform live at Stereosonic, advises, “Guys, please try to keep some form of upper body clothing on, even a singlet – hopefully something absorbent. Nobody goes to a festival to get your rave sweat all over them, even if you have worked out like crazy to shred up for the pleasure of other men on parade. Girls – avoid fluffy boots, stilettos, and sunglasses that cover your entire face. Wear zinc cream: it’s [sun] protection, but it’s also really, really cute.”
This T-shirt is your ticket to a free rider
Other Stereosonic acts have a yet greater stake in fashion – and are irreverent in different ways. Take flamboyant Danish femcee (and singer) Lucy Love, generating a buzz with her first international album, Kilo, of bassy electro-hop. Lucy mashes up MIA’s streetwise and pan-global futurism, Robyn’s Euro edginess, and Janelle Monáe’s sleek arty style. As it happens, Lucy, joined at Stereosonic by her “beat controller” Yo Akim and dancers, has studied costume design. “I love fashion – I love the whole energy that fashion can create. I actually don’t get very many free clothes, I turn them down (laughs). It’s because the clothes that I really want don’t exist! I need them designed by someone… So I sew a lot of clothes myself. I try to really stay progressive with the look. I love doing photo shoots and covers and stuff like that. I’ve always talked about making a clothes line – always… I still think the focus for me is creating stuff for myself, for my music videos or something like that – and then maybe a clothes line will come later on. But fashion is a big part of my musical angle!”
