Fashion and Music: The Age-long Affair

Fifty years go by, hair gets shorter, jeans get tighter and you're holding a can of dark fruits in a crowd of angsty adolescents with bucket hats screaming the lyrics to Live Forever.

There are no bigger indications of the times than fashion and music: an inseparable relationship, intertwined through the ages that moves with the culture, subculture and those who counter it.

The two are so inextricably connected as mediums for the artistic expression of individualism as well as political beliefs and has never been more prevalent than in the last 100 years.

World War II Britain saw the rationing and restriction of what garments were available for up to four years after its end. It wasn't a completely lacklustre time for fashion as designers tried to adapt to the times, but neither was it the most invigorating.

Postwar designers aimed to counter the expectations of the "war-time lady" by introducing "soft femininity", with longer skirts, smaller waists and a real emphasis on accentuating female attributes in the most conservative, 1940s way possible. This was a huge contrast to what only a decade or two later had to offer.

The Decades of the Creative Self

Artists are constantly pushing boundaries, catapulting society out of their comfort zones and into much more daring, bold and experimental dwellings and it can be argued that there is no better example of this than in the maverick decade of the 1960s.

A time of cultural upheaval, where sex, colour, class and creed would never be the same again and what a stark contrast to the much duller and conservative days of the 40s and arguably, the 1950s.

The 60s was a decade of social, political and sexual liberation brought about by pivotal changes such as the boom of the birth control pill and the introduction of the mini-skirt from London-based designer, Mary Quant. The resurgence of the boutique was a way to set your creative self free through the introduction of psychedelia, neon colours and geometric patterns, but also a way to both express and reject a political stance that, not surprisingly, was not only limited to fashion.

As musician and songwriter Jon Batiste says in the first episode of Rolling Stone's docu-series: "People see you before they hear you and when they look at you, it's got to sound like something."

From rough teddy boys in the very early 60s, to clean cut suits as they hit mid-decade and by the end, they were in an array of colours, paisley patterns and oversized coats.

Of course, it's The Beatles. One band where the evolution of a decade can be found in both their sound and their look. From the early days of simple, three chord melodies on Please, Please Me to the ground-breaking use of orchestral instrumentation on Sgt. Peppers... nearing the end of the decade.

They were not only huge mainstream pop sensations but experimental, cultural representatives of their time – nothing short of innovators and freedom thinkers.

On the other side of the 60s, Mods (or modernists) were a prominent subculture that bled from the 50s Beatnik generation which heavily influenced male fashion and music in Britain in the early to mid 60s. The subculture brought around bands such as The Who, The Kinks and the Small Faces (whose name is literally mod slang for fashion leader). Their looks were "classy", in contrast with their rivals. They were their own British rejection of rockers, surfers and "folkies".

As the decade drew to a close, US troops stormed the jungles of Vietnam and soon, what was once swinging, was now psychedelic and it made a big trip into the next decade.

"There are no rules in the fashion game now", Vogue told society in the 1970s and so birthed a huge cultural emphasis on individuality.

David Bowie was one of the first artists on the scene to encapsulate everything that we now associate with the fashion and music of the time: platforms, colours and glitter (and loads of it) making him a bold and androgynous symbol of the music scene, breaking the barriers of societal expectations and letting the world know – through both his image and sound – that it's okay to simply just be you, no matter how "out of this world" that is. He truly was a Starman of his time.

And so from this, glam rock transpired and bands such as Slade and the Bay City Rollers cropped up in the mainstream with appearances on Top of the Pops, following the glam rock fashion codes of "tight on the top, loose on the bottom".

What goes in, must come out and what goes up, must come down. As the glam rock scene happened above ground, there was a punk scene forming underground, collecting remnants of its subculture predecessors – mod, ska and soul.

The Sex Pistols acted like leaders in the subculture's passion for anti-establishment, never straying from the decade's value of individualism, just merely putting a rebellious spin on it and it wasn't long before punk took up arms against the "status quo" and all those people who got in the way – parents and authority.

The Decades of the Non-Conformist Self

The 80s wasn't just big hair, big shoulders and overused synthesisers. The lacing up of Doc Martens and tearing up of leather jackets continued as a reaction against the hippie movement of the previous decades but most importantly, a reaction against the materialist values of its own decade.

From punk, sprang new genres including new wave, post-punk and Goth which inspired both male and female mainstream fashion. Bands associated with this included The Cure, Sioxise and the Banshees and The Cult.

As the 90s rolled around, subcultures only expanded and soon birthed Grunge; what some claim is the perfect concoction of punk and metal featuring distorted electric guitar and holding the exact same values of its predecessors.

Grunge formed out of Seattle dive bars from usually young, adolescent musicians who popularised the trend of "mundane everyday style" – wearing the same clothes on stage as they would wear at home such as flannel shirts and hand-me-downs.

Nirvana is the most notable band associated with the subculture, with their lyrics as dreary and wearisome as their attire.

In contrast to this US subculture, the mid 90s was also undergoing a huge Britpop movement in the UK, heavily emphasising "Britishness" which was similar to the mods of the 60s. In fact, it's important to note that Britpop was heavily influenced from both the image and sound of its British ancestors such as The Beatles and The Who. They aimed to bring a brighter, more upbeat look and sound to the 90s, distancing from the UK's equivalent of Grunge – Shoegaze.

Known as the Big Four of Britpop; Blur, Oasis, Suede and Pulp are the most influential bands associated with the term – with a famous age-long chart battle between the former two.

Both Oasis and Blur sported what soon became known as "retro casual" fashion, wearing vintage, retro sportswear such as Slazenger, Adidas and, of course, bucket hats.

The Decades of History Repeating Itself

Fast forward to 2020 and, still, fashion and music are darting off in different directions, yet never parting. The youth of today are looking more and more back into the past for inspiration for the future.

YouTube star Devyn Crimson has carved a name for herself in recent years on social media and has long been fascinated with the cycle of fashion and music.

The 23-year-old boasts an incredible 76k Instagram followers and more than 96k YouTube subscribers, and dedicates her livelihood to the coalition of music and fashion.

" I would say my say my style is an eclectic mix of grungy 60s rock and early 70s glam with some enchanting folk touches," she tells The Weekender.

"I'm very inspired by 60s and 70s groupie fashion. They weren't always trying to fit this idea of 'pretty', which I really appreciate."

Devyn also explains that her fashion is heavily influenced by her music taste:

"Music inspired almost all my creative work which I consider my style to be a part of. I owe music a lot."

When asked why she believes that so much of the youth of today are dressing according to previous decades, Devyn responds: "I think we have always done this by taking trends from previous decades and adding them back into current style and trends."

She also said what she hopes people can take from her channel regarding music and fashion today: "I really hope that people can dive in and fully experiment with their own self expression.

"For me, this was something so liberating when I finally got to that point and giving myself that pass was life-changing."

Devyn isn't the only one exploring and experimenting with the fashion and music of previous decades, Instagram and YouTube is filled with content upon content of young artists and creators who are inspired more by music and fashion's past than they are by the mainstream.

Two young Stirling-based students and musicians Kai Ford, 20 and Brett Gibson, 21 reveal that this is what they've been doing for years.

"I owe almost all of my style to the music I listen to", Kai says. " When I was about 16, I started building my collection of paisley shirts, 501 Levi Jeans and Parkas in my strongest attempt to look and act like a mod from the 60s. I wanted to stand out in a crowd."

He continues: "Liam Gallagher from Oasis was probably the first person to make me pay attention to fashion, there was something simply captivating from a swagger in a zipped up parka and tambourine but currently, I'm becoming more inspired from Bob Dylan in the mid 60s; his whole Beatnik persona, hidden behind a pair of cool black glasses."

Brett adds: "I owe music a decent bit. I'd see pictures of bands I like and I'd be thinking: 'I want to dress like that'. I used to hang out with some punks so I patched up my jacket."

The two men go on to explain their beliefs in regards to music and fashion repeating itself.

"Oh, nothing could be more true, though I don't believe music and fashion ever really die out." Brett explains, " They just subside a bit before coming back.

"It's in the same way funk used to be popular and now you've got guys like Vulfpeck or even Glasgow bands like Tom McGuire and the Brassholes channelling that kind of energy."

Kai adds: "I've always had a feeling that with music and fashion, it takes about 30 years to come back around again, like the explosion of the 60s British Invasion carried over during the 90s "Cool Britannia" Britpop era.

"There will be another resurgence of style and music in the future and I'm excited to see what style is found next."

Even today, we are still searching for creative inspiration from the past. Our much-loved musicians from today credit the ones who came before them and we will continuously find remnants of the "good old days" in the music and fashion of today.

One common denominator throughout all the decades of this age-long affair of music and fashion, is the emphasis on the "self" or the "individual" and so long as the human race continues, the affair shall go on.

And so 20 years have passed since the end of the 1990s and when you find yourself in a crowd of angsty adolescents, wearing a bucket hat, screaming the lyrics to Live Forever, just remember you're a living participant in this age-long affair. You are not only re-enacting history, you're making it.