How Luxury Italian Fashion Became The Face Of British Rave Culture

Sometime around the early 1990s, a new musical style began to gain popularity in Britain: a new genre borne from conflicting influences — with rave culture and reggae seen as the biggest driving forces — quickly spreading across London and the rest of the country. Dubbed “Jungle,” the style has come to be seen as one of the most influential British subcultures in recent memory. With the fashion side set to be the subject of a new exhibition in London, a key element of Jungle was undoubtedly its accompanying aesthetic: Super Sharp, then, will examine how Jungle and UK Garage — two genres intricately linked — reappropriated luxury Italian fashion labels to make them rave staples. The exhibition has been partly conceived by British DJ and producer Saul Milton, and is set to feature pieces from his extensive Moschino archive. Despite the links, however, there were notable differences between the two cultures. “Jungle was a bit faster and darker,” explains Andres Branco, founder of Wavey Garms, a Facebook group for buying and selling clothes which has moved into everything from stages at festivals to running the creative direction on two Nike campaigns and producing a film with The Rig Out. This musical difference was also reflected in the scene’s aesthetics: “Jungle was way more sporty,” Branco adds, “loads of big tick Nike everywhere, as well as thick gold necklaces and designer sweaters with massive logos.” Read more at Hypebeast.