Uniform Rebellion

I watched a re-run of SNL tonight, featuring the band, "The Strokes". I've always liked the strokes. I think their sound, while obviously not original, is refreshing in this era of music. They definitely have their style, and play it up to its fullest. However, I have to say that watching their performance left me thinking more about the costumes of musicians than whether or not I enjoy their music. The lead singer was wearing some sort of obviously tailored sailer-like suit. Now, it wasn't a sailor suit. It couldn't be something he would have picked up at Goodwill, or a thrift shop, having been left behind by a former vet. This was a blazer made to look vaguely like a sailor's jacket. What drives me nuts is that someone probably made this blazer for him, perhaps even for this performance. Now, the whole idea of rock-n-roll clothing is that you don't care, sometimes resulting in really fucking goofy outfits. As long as it's not forced, pretty much anything goes, including a policy against hygiene. And this is where my issue lies. This blazer was so forced, and as a result, I suspect the outfits of his cohorts were contrived as well. Perhaps I would have believed the cacausian, possibly jew, afro sported by the guitarist as just a lack of care if I hadn't seen the lead singers ensemble.

My issue in the whole matter is the question of why these outfits are worn. Again, I don't buy that these costumes are worn out of a lack of care. Someone made a conscious decision to dress the band in such a way as to achieve a particular look. What is that reason? Should I belive that the band, or it's manager, has a deep-seeded insecurity and feels costumes are necessary? Perhaps they feel that they need to give this band a wardrobe, a look, that keyed the audience into the fact that these musicians were cutting edge and original. To be honest I find the opposite truly compelling. Seeing a group of guys who look like just about anybody get on the stage and play enjoyable music is always fun. I guess the argument would be made that this is just a case of effective branding, but the opposite message reaches me. Self expression is endearing, transparent manipulation of an image is not.