OFFCUFF / Substation
I’ve spent the past few days down at the Substation. There was a zine fair which was very different to what I’m used to. In London, the punk origin of the zine has subsided in favour of an art school aesthetic. I’m used to cupcakes, grown women wearing kid’s party dresses, and lots of chic sourced from Top Shop / Oxfam / Travels to Japan. It was curious to see a bunch of guys wearing bomber jackets, rolled up jeans, polo shirts, suspenders and doc martens. As the band started up, they started pushing each other and pogoing until they fell over; then they continued on the floor in a kind of angry writhe until someone else came and broke it up. When the singer held the mic out, they shouted “Oi!” or “Hooligans!” in English accents. People had the flag of St. George sewed on to their jackets or stitched into their polo shirts, and when the band stopped between songs, football chants started up. It was surreal, but the fact that these guys are wearing the outfit of the British working class circa 1980 is continuous with the tendency of Singaporeans to wear Anglo-American styles.
Also: got to see OffCuff. I will never tire of sitting and watching beautiful colours on an overhead projector.
