FEATURE:
One Size Fits All
PHOTO CREDIT: NIX PHOTO/Pexels
Making Music Clothing More Interesting
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I can appreciate that it is quite hard…
IN THIS PHOTO: Paul McCartney of The Beatles photographed by Linda Eastman at the press party for Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in 19th May, 1967
to put out merchandise that is durable, engaging and original. Maybe this point does not apply as much to merchandise stalls at gigs and more about bigger chains like HMV. Band T-shirts especially I find so samey and bland. Most T-shirts with a black background and a print that is sort of stuck on. One which will fade if you put it through the wash enough times. It will crack and not last. Most of the T-shirts you see are also for male acts. It is this case of the music T-shirts all having the same look and feeling a bit cheap. It would be nice if there was more variety and eye-catching designs. On many artists’ websites, you do get a choice of clothing. From hoodies and T-shirts through to other garments, you can wear your favourite artist with pride. I think that music clothing used to be more exciting. I want to go out and be able to find something unique and standout. I have been thinking a lot about psychedelic clothing and the sort of clothes The Beatles work in the 1960s. Especially Paul McCartney in 1967. It was a really interesting time for fashion. Not to say it lacks inspiration and colour today. You can get some incredible clothing on the high street. Even so, you have to go a bit off-piste or find hidden shops and alleyways to discover the most eclectic and distinct clothes. Unless you can go to a gig and get memorabilia there, you often have to rely on websites and the high street. It may be a cost thing that means music T-shirts and clothing has to look the same and be made to cost. So that people can afford to buy them. It just feels like one size fits all. Producing a similar sort of thing. When I walk into a chain like HMV, you get all these black T-shirts with the logos and nothing more. No real choice or anything that seems either durable or eye-catching. There are websites like Etsy where you can buy music T-shirts.
Again, there is a lot of choice in terms of the artists listed, though the designs and colour scheme is very samey. I do like music clothing and it can be a real conversation starter. Maybe other people feel differently. As a massive fan of The Beatles, what you get on the high street is all the same. Nothing that is interesting. Not too much in the way of options when you look online. Even, dare I say it, Kate Bush’s website is a bit bland regarding clothing. There might be something prohibiting artists and stores from increasing their range of taking risks with designs and colour. When I was growing up, band and artist T-shirts and clothing were a big deal. They were a real way of bonding with others, whilst showing your support and love for an artist. A real sense of flair and thought has gone our of music clothing. Again, this might not apply to the memorabilia stands. Most of us are going to be shopping online or the high street. Trying to find something in the way of a T-shirt, hoodie or something else that we can wear out and keep for a while. I have found the last few music T-shirts I have bought shrink quite quickly or the designs on them fade. They are not really made to last at all. The t-shirts I wear the most are ones that do not have prints on them or anything that can come unstuck or crack. Cost might be a factor, yet there are ways that you can make music-related clothing accessible and exciting at the same time.
Maybe this malaise and issue reflects on an industry where design and aesthetic is not as important as perhaps once it was. I find a lot of album covers insipid or lacking. A big opportunity missed. There was some great memorabilia and music clothing decades ago. I think people would invest in music clothing if it were a bit more expensive but it was more than something simple and stick-on. It is no offence to the people who design and make this clothing. They are okay for a short time though, like vinyl, you do want to keep hold of your music T-shirts. BBC Radio 6 Music does a T-Shirt Day every year where people sport artists on their chest and get a song by that artist played. A lot of these T-shirts are from years ago. I wonder whether most have bought them from gigs. I look on websites selling music T-shirts and most are quite generic. Whether artists feel it would be too costly and not profitable enough putting out a range of T-shirts or any other clothing. Legacy artists too are subject to the bare minimum. It seems a shame. I go out hunting for music T-shirts and stuff like that. Wanting something cool that I can keep wearing. What I buy either doesn’t last long or I get depressed finding nothing appealing or original. I hope that this changes in years to come. It is important that design and making something distinct and standout is important. Not mass producing the same type of hoodie, jumper or T-shirt. Quite hard to find, especially on the high street, I and so many others yearn to discover something…
PHOTO CREDIT: Panos Sakalakis/Pexels
EXCITING and long-lasting.