The Korean Music Wave 2011 in Bangkok is a fashionista’s playground.
Steffya Xie reports on the sartorial hits and misses.
2AM played safe in their typical Korean boy-band ensemble of neutrals, consisting of navy blue jackets, tuxedo vests and white shirts. It would have been better if those prince charmings had spiced things up a little by donning stylishly elegant oxford shoes instead of boringly black leather lawyer shoes. Time to break out of the fashion cocoon?
The boys from 2PM might have won the crowd over with their smooth vocals, but they hit all the wrong notes with their asymmetrical outfits. The white zigzag fabric not only failed to convey a notion of dissimilarity, but came across as too worn-out, like a son wearing his father’s business suit. To top it off, they did no justice to their beastly charisma, opting for the very feminine velvety silk gloves to clothe their hands in. Maybe, in future, the rocker’s fingerless leather gloves might be a better option in channeling their inner masculinity.
The Girl Rockers from 4 Minute decided to unleash their inner rocker chick with their gothic ensemble consisting of leathers, boots and punkishly heavy metal accessories. But, wait a minute, what’s up with HyunA’s handkerchief hem dress? The jagged-toothed hemline of her black breezy dress stuck out like a sore thumb among the rest of the girls. Rocker chic? Tick. Leggy exposure? Tick. Coordinated visual presentation? Minus one.
If there was an award for Best Outfit on that day, After School wins our vote hands-down with their vibrantly modern interpretation of guard-of-honor. Their military-inspired outfits with its resplendently bright pink and silver-fringed epaulettes were a positively radiant sight to behold.
Less is more. This much is evident from Beast’s ensemble for the day. Their simplistic black and white outfit combination was given a subtle boost with different textures. Still, their pedestrian, run-of-the-mill outfits making more than its occasional appearance among contemporary boy-bands shout more cookie-cutter than anything else.
Yes, we might be a group, but we consist of four individual personalities, thank you very much. We might be imagining things, but that seems to be the message Brown Eyed Girls is trying to get across to us. A messy combination of biker’s jacket, spiky studded outer-coat, torn and tattered dress and puffy shirtdress; that’s a whole diverse of personalities lurking in there. Apart from monochromatic black, the portrayal of a specific theme appears to be lacking in their dress sense.
CN Blue, one out of two bands (the other being FT Island) performing on that day who prides themselves on being real bands instead of idol boy-bands, opted for the minimalistic, clean-cut look. The quartet aimed to impress with their musical talents and singing abilities rather than flamboyant or outrageous outfits. As long as their vocals are sweet music to their fans’ ears, who gives a toss about their simple shirts and jeans look?
Following close behind After School, DBSK wins our votes for Second Best Dressed. The duo wowed us by marrying patent PVC with strikingly contrasting textures, coupled with leather cargo pants. All that shimmering blacks and silvers consummated in an impressive performance outfits. And with cargo back to rule the fashion runway, looks like DBSK (who returned to the stage recently after a three-year hiatus) is trying to make a sweeping statement with their wardrobe choices!
We are convinced FT Island’s Hongki’s outfit is the product of many a fashion thoughts. His attire, an introspective reinvention of the four-pocket jacket into a deconstructed vest with rat-gnawed edges, stole the limelight away from his fellow band-mates.
Brown Eyed Girls’ Ga-In and 2AM’s Jo Kwon shows us they are firmly anchored in Fairytale Land with their bridal garbs and sweet chemistry. Ga-In sported a décolletage-revealing, balloon-hemmed evening dress which contoured in all the right places while Jo Kwon charmed fans in a simple blue and white number.
Hosts’ outfits are the most important in any event, as they are the ones who rate the highest exposure throughout the show. SNSD’s Tiffany got her right choice of dress as a host - royal purple, cute silhouette and at a most desirable length; while 2PM’s Nichkhun looked charming even in the standardized male host dressing. However SNSD’s Yuri was a picture of sartorial disaster. While her choice of attire was a nice blue printed dress, the curvy goddess failed to carry it with style. Besides the big, bold prints which are a big no-no, the lacey yoke also broadened her frame. End result? Poor Yuri just ended up looking frumpy and pear-shaped in her breezy printed dress.
MBLAQ hits just the right notes with their matt gold, bling-bling numbers, yo-yoing between a subdued and exaggerated fashion statement. G.O and Seung Ho struck the right balance by pairing their loud jackets with nondescript black tops while Lee Joon’s minimalist black outfit is offset by his crowning head of yellow.
We love the plaid flannel A-line dresses donned by Miss A, possibly the most uniformed dressing among all the performing groups that night. The loose-fitting bodice with silhouette-waist emphasis was only juxtaposed by different shades of blue. We especially love the subtle variations of the ensemble, such as Jia, Min and Suzy’s leg-of-mutton sleeves in which we see a modern revival of the 1890s Renaissance style.
Opting for the omnipresent animal prints, Secret comes across as more tacky than très chic. We say that leopard and zebra prints are best worn in sparingly frugal amounts, say, as accoutrements on scarves, head bands, leggings or a chic designer belt. Unfortunately, the four girls looked a little over-the-top, and show us why subtlety is key.
On the other hand, Sistar shows us effectively why less is more. Their modern interpretation of animal prints ensemble consists of a playful mish-mash of colors, textures and cute cropped jackets. The only downside is their flimsy thin leggings which only serve to emphasis their bottom-heavy silhouettes; perhaps a more bodice-flattering option would be PVC pants or shorts.
The sassy sweethearts from Girls Generation charmed our socks off with their MOD 60’s inspired uniform guise. With color blocking a la mode this season, the leggy nonet made a bright and bold statement with their simple black and white palette. We like how the monochromatic solids channel the retro look with a tinge of space-age futurism. It also helps that they are in the same patent boots and shorts of similar length, spawning an echoing effect which makes them stand out on stage.
Sexy dancing queen Son Dam Bi’s get-up might seem a little mismatched up-close, but seems to work magically on stage. Her white halter cheongsam-inspired top with blue beaded mesh, coupled with a girlie puff skirt and thigh-high boots was every fan boy’s dream come true.
We cannot emphasis enough our love for T-ara’s over-the-top jacket, reminiscent of Chanel’s classic tweed jacket. Doesn’t it come across very haute-couture-ish? The girls show us that shimmery appliqués are the way to go and that one focus piece is enough to steal the show.
Channeling their inner cowgirl spirits, Wonder Girls looks appropriately dressed; that is, for a casual day out shopping, instead of performing in front of a 50,000 strong crowd in the biggest Hallyu concert overseas this year. Give them a handbag each and they would look like office ladies after work. Their understated denim and brown leather attire successfully channels the spirit of western American, but unfortunately, falls flat in illuminating any star quality.
