Dress Like a Rock Star ~ Visual Kei styles you can wear!

Ok, so it's sort of unavoidable, but if you listen to visual kei and watch the music videos and have an interest in fashion, you might want to dress like them from time to time. Anime conventions are a good place to do this (especially for the more elaborate styles!), but if you want to add a bit of VK elements into your everyday style, a little bit of creativity can be in order to do just that.

Step 1- Look at Cure magazine. Most probably know this as one of the most popular VK mags out there, and lucky for us that speak English and not Japanese, they translate one or two interviews into English in every issue. Apparently there's also Cure USA? (I haven't been able to find it...) There's also a Cure app for the iPhone/ iPod touch in US iTunes which is free, though you do have to pay for each digital issue (comes with one free, and it's VERSAILLES!). In each print issue, there is always a section dedicated to new clothes by the major brands to create your own looks, and a Hangry and Angry cartoon is always featured. Plus, styling tips for hair and makeup. Follow the pictures you don't need to read Japanese to figure it out! But even with just a little online searching of your favorite bands, you can easily pick up elements to add to your own look.

Here's a spread from the latest Cure with...D=OUT! Was so surprised and happy when I found this. Though I think Kouki's style on the left is a bit more wearable, I love that look on the right! This looks a little more formal and has a sort of understated elegance with just the blazer and a couple of well placed chains to add a bit of punch to the styling.

And here's a more casual look. More details and PINK! It just looks so cool. I would totally hit up downtown in that. And on the right that Chanel-ly jacket with the miliary details is so in right now it isn't even funny. Speaking of miliary, not only is it VERY visual kei and a style which many bands do for a PV or two, but it's also very in at the moment. Just take a look at the awesomeness of Balmain on the runway (and there's a lot more where that came from!):
Back to Cure...Streetwear looks by Algonquins and the god of punk rock clothing, h.naoto. Luckily enough, for any type of VK that you're into there's pretty much an appropriate style you can pair it with. Take this image of Maya from LM.C, for example. (Wonderful Wonderholic outfit.) A lot of LM.C outfits are hip hop/ athletic wear inspired with a bit of punk mixed in with accessories and attitude.
The obvious ones are the more gothic/punk inspired groups by nature, but even bits of pieces of outfits like spiked bracelets and ties can be incorporated into almost any look to give it that extra edge.

And for oshare-kei bands, go decora! Look at SuG from Pink Masquerade PV. Prints, anyone? And look at Shinpei's headphones!!!:
Any style you choose to emulate- have FUN with it! This is probably one of the best things about VK, because dressing the part is so important to the bands. It's also some of the most fun for the fans!! So go out and enjoy!

Much Ado About Everything ~ D=OUT

Ok, so it's been a little while...and a lot has come about. Four new CDs which I am currently listening to and LOVING- Tokyo Muzical Hotel (by SuG), Wonderful Wonderholic (by LM.C, get it on Itunes!!!), Jubilee (by Versailles), and Carnival Ukiyo (By D=OUT). A nice little mix of some fairly new releases. I've been skimming them all pretty evenly, but I'd like to start with a little impression on D=OUT (thanks Youtube!)




The melodies are democratic and I'd recommend them to your average j-rock/pop lover, sitting on a similar sound scale to Alice Nine, SID, Vidoll, and An Cafe, to name a few. I quickly caught onto this band since I heard them about a year ago, and they sure have an awesome sense of style to match their music. Though not as visually in-your-face as, let's say, a Dir en Grey ensemble from back in the day, or a thoroughly costumed Mixed Speaker's Inc. getup, they do know how to put a good VK look together. This is the type of thing that can easily be overdone and just look horrible, but here all of the elements are in perfect balance.

I kind of want close ups to see all the details! I mean, you know there's more going on than just suits and studded belts. And there's definitely some glitter and/or shimmery fabrics going on there, shining out from the canvas of basic black. They have what I like to call a "classic VK" look, because it's a visual kei-ers raison d'etre, but has to be done well in order to stand out. The suit, lots of belts, lots of jewelry, lots of hair product, lots of dangling elements...as Tim Gunn would say "That's a lot of look." (Because he's really democratic about his fashion advise, I would LOVE to see him really critiquing some classic looks from the pages of Shoxx!) I have to say Kouki's hair is my favorite bit of standout style from this video; I always wanted bright red tips on my hair!

And the energy this band has is just infectious. They have this same type on enthusiasm in their other videos, with the clothes to match. (Flashback, Shangri La, to name just two more...) Just makes you want to get up and dance to the music. I'm sure your can feel it.

As for procuring this for yourself, if you like this video, get the Type-A version of the CD, it comes with this and extra footage, so worth it! You can get Zipang (their first album) from Itunes for some earlier favorites to see where they started.