Style & Substance vs Oversubstantiality

STYLE & SUBSTANCE vs VILE OVERSUBSTANTIALITY

In the 50s Elvis inspired dodgy fringes and greasy suits; in the 60s peas-loving, world-embracing tunes encouraged men not to shave and wear flared trousers and in the 70s iconic figures like Bowie and Bolan sparked off the glam era. Most of you are probably old enough to remember yourselves what happened in the 80s, and if not you’re probably lucky you didn’t get asked for identification when paying your admission fee at the door.

Well, all this is no news, is it? Why write a poxy article about all this? There is a point to be made – music inspires style, not the other way round. It has in the past anyway, but does it now? Should bloody hope so you think, or that’s the way it should be anyway, but I begin to wonder when I see eccentrically dressed people standing in corners, sipping their drinks in a rather suggestive pose in a not too dimly lit corner so you can (just about) make out their outfit. Now the suggestive pose turns into a rather uncomfortable one for a split second (…’I shouldn’t have gone to Camden Best Kebab with this corset on before going out…’)

There is nowt wrong with looking great and clearly it is to be encouraged. But there is a huge difference between the music fan and the poseur. Having caught fractions of bog chats while in the toilet queue, it is clear many people’s main purpose of going out is to simply show off their wardrobe, it’s not really about the music anymore.

So you guessed it, there’s even a purpose behind The Vapour Trail (apart from the obvious like playing you good music and putting great new bands on) - partly inspired by the C86 movement, where bands had their own clubnights, playing records that inspired them and they felt a kinship with, making fanzines and putting them about in the club, and the general message and purpose of it all was their ‘DIY’ scene that was built on creativity and belief in music.

So if your reason for being here tonight was spurned on by your latest addition to your wardrobe rather than an interest in music then you should probably ask yourself some serious questions.

Or you’re just in the wrong club.


Julia Sieradzki is the boss of The Vapour Trail, one of its DJs and plays low slung bass in The Firm.