Seems like Richie is fitting in very well with the band
That's a shame.
Believe it or not I was waiting for that
I live in my band shirts.
As do I . At a guess I would wear black trakky daks or board shorts and a band shirt 350 days a year , which probably gives you an indication in general of how many shits I give about what people think. We actually had this conversation last night - me and the missus.
We were going out to a dinner to a pub for Mothers day and I went to the trouble of dolling myself up in some jeans (and a band shirt
) and I got a lecture on how I could at least wear a proper shirt. My reply was along the lines of "It's just a bloody pub"and the chorus from my favourite Great White song
What's it called again?
I couldn't care less what anyone else thinks.
You are officially the first person to ever accuse me of giving a shit what people think when it comes to clothes
In general I 100% agree but let's say tomorrow you lose the plot and start getting into Grindcore music. I dunno if you've seen some of the album covers but they're bloody disgusting , and I'm no prude. So you say alright - I like the music so therefore I'm going to wear this shirt with a disemboweled female with her head in a toilet having various acts performed on her. You don't care what anyone thinks. Extreme I know but a blanket "I don't care" is a bit simplistic for me at least.
It also may not be about what others think necessarily and more about what you feel comfortable with in yourself and that's what I actually said........I feel like I'm growing out of some of that stuff a bit. I never meant to make this an essay on selecting metal fashion but what the hell.
I'll try to explain where I was coming from.
I'll discuss a few scenarios:
1) There are certain things that I used to be obsessed with as a kid and which I now just don't feel are very "me". The cartoonish/ghoulish/offensive side of metal graphics (less so in the music) is one -playing with action figures, making paper planes and watching wrestling are others. When I say I've grown out of them that's not to imply that people who still play with toys and watch wrestling should grow up -not at all. My 74 yo dad collects model cars and watches wrestling to this day and he's someone I respect immensely. They're just things I enjoyed in my teens and simply can't relate to any more.
2) Once I started thinking about this I also found another little subconscious train of thought.......one which you may find rather weird
When I pick a metal shirt to go out in (and I'd never considered this before) I do not care what people think of me in most situations (see below for exceptions) but I do care somewhat how 'our music" and its fans are perceived. The few of us out there who feel proud enough to wear our metal shirts everywhere are ambassadors for true metal
I'm hearing Eric Adams as I type this with my tongue in my cheek slightly.
You know how seriously I rate the music we love though and yet the vast majority of people I know pigeonhole us fans as bogans , morons and/or devil worshippers or something. In a weird way - in addition to not feeling very "me" anymore (which is the main factor) - I also feel like I don't need to give them more ammo by wearing chicks with dicks on a Poison shirt , a "Metal Up Your Arse" Metallica shirt , A Steel Panther STD Tour shirt, Manowar in their loin cloths, or say this
, or even this.....(which I kinda like
)
And they're tame relatively speaking. That's not to say I won't get out some absolutely horrible stuff for the next Steel Panther gig or the KISS gig in October and have a fun night , but it's not the sort of stuff I want to wear regularly these days.
I was thinking about starting a worst album covers thread and you're forcing me to use some of my best material
3) Let's take a relatively tame shirt
Most days I do either the school drop off or pick up. It may not bother others but to me it's not cool to wear something like that as not only does it reinforce the stereotype of idiot metal fans , it reflects badly on my son and likely me as a parent in the eyes of others. I'm also very conscious of not doing anything that could get my 7yo boy bullied - that is something I seriously care about. And again , aside from perhaps KISS, it's more of the cartoonish/offensive image of metal that I feel I've gone past a bit.
I'll give you another example. I spent 10 years as a community pharmacist from 1994-2004 and ,as happens , you become a bit of a local celebrity and I would've known a vast majority of the community (and their kids) on a first name basis. We're talking maybe 500 families who I would see everywhere I go out of hours.
Again ..it may not bother others but in that scenario I always felt a responsibility not to wear stuff that could cause offense (or fright in the case of Eddie/Vic) to a whole bunch of parents/kids who looked up to me (and my employer) as someone they could trust with their health.
Still.........relative to anyone I know I'm by far and away the least fashion conscious
Anyway........it's all really academic and we all do what we're comfy with. Sorry for the rant - the words are flowing tonight for some reason on a topic that probably doesn't deserve them
.
Let's get some Top 10's started tomorrow
Topic: The Official Hard Rock / Classic Metal Music Discussion and Memorabilia Thread! (Read 909761 times)