DAEDELUS
THE LA ELECTRONIC MUCISIAN ON WHY HE CHOOSES TO DRESS UP LIKE A VICTORIAN DANDY
"For the past eight years my wife and I have dressed up in Victorian clothing. I love the craftsmanship. Everything you held in your hand wasn't made by an assembly line - it was handcrafted. It had a quality and a substance that you just don't find in fashion now.
One thing I've discovered is that it's really impractical to wear Victorian clothing in Los Angeles. It's stupid actually. It's overly hot and the seasons are unforgiving for this type of fashion choice. You have to remember that during Victorian times, there was a mini Ice Age in England, so it kind of made sense to wear fur coats and corsets because it kept you warm. Living in Venice Beach is a bit different.
It may be totally impractical but dressing like this is something that separates me from other musicians. When I started playing live I noticed that if people watch a casually dressed person they act casually. So it made a lot of sense to take my home obsession to the stage. I give fashion a lot of credit for letting people party a little harder. To a lot of them, they don't know it's Victorian - they just know I look like a circus conductor or a ringmaster or something. It's outside of their familiarity zone and allows them to let loose.
I suppose you could call me a modern dandy. One of the dandy ideals was that everything was about art. If you wore your cravat slightly askew, it had to mean something. Details were everything! I like that. Fashion can be too throwaway these days.
A lot of people think of Victorian society as being in black and white, partially because of the photography. But during the golden period at the beginning of 1838, society was full of crazy colours. Nowadays we have Day Glo, but that was nothing compared to the fashion colour shift that occurred back then. I think my wife and I will always dress like this, even if it's in private.
One thing that makes me laugh is that when Queen Victoria was on the throne, people noted when they first heard classical music. I dare say what would happen to me if they heard my music!"
TIM NOAKES