JAPANESE MENS & WOMENS PUNK CLOTHING, SEXY DYNAMITE LONDON & STIGMATA. OSAKA GOTH LOLITA SHOPPING.
Sadness… Sexy Dynamite London, the Harajuku punk brand, is forever gone. I’m glad I was able to say farewell by taking photos at the boutique in Shinsaibashi, Osaka.
In its final days, Sexy Dynamite London (SDL) featured a Hide collaboration. As my friend put it, X Japan guitarist “Hide Matsumoto was the ‘Kurt Cobain’ of Japan, and his influence is still clear in almost all facets of industrial/metal in Japan.”
But his legacy lives on… Hide has given us a plethora of bands via collaboration, including Spread Beaver, Zilch, Oblivion Dust, and Zeppet Store.
Stigmata, the Goth bondage brand that Kenzo-A created and sold to SDL, is also gone. However, Kenzo-A is undead and well — his current brand, Rituals, is doing well. (Did you see my coverage of the Rituals fashion show with pole dancers?)
The brand carried on the spirit of Sid and Nancy: leopard prints and ripped-up tees.
What do you think of Sexy Dynamite London’s final collection?
Let’s remember the brand through my old store photos… You can peek inside SDL Tokyo and other punk Goth shops in my Japan shopping guide.
Is punk dead? Will Harajuku fashion brands will continue to scale back or close down?
Japanese Word of the Day: Akiraka = Clear
Song of the Day: hide with Spread Beaver – Rocket Dive
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23 Comments
Wow.. O_O Kenzo’s old stuff is gone? D: I wanted to buy some when I go to Japan… ahkdiaiofa grr Oh well. I’ll take a look at his new stuff.
I think the reason why a lot of these brands are shutting down is because the pricing is so expensive. Then again, it’s Japan. EVERYTHING is expensive. So is the way the alt. fashionista *sigh*
No PUTUMAYO either D: ghkja uraahhhh!! Oh well… there is still h.NAOTO so yay ^^
Wait, there is still Putumayo… but no Banana Fish. >_<
You can still find SDL and Stigmata in Closet Child!
Yes, i think the problem isn’t the style itself, but the price, SDL was just soooo expensive, even their shop seller/clerks told that to every customer. I don’t think normal people will put something like 75€(about 100 $) for a simple shirt. Even if it was punky and beatutiful, it was clearly not worth the price.
It’s true… >_< I never bought anything from the store (or most GL Punk stores, come to think of it… Closet Child is my mainstay ahah)
Aww… Bye bye. ='(
I never got the chance to buy a piece from this store because it’s way out of my league (the prices). XD
Seems like that is what caused its demise…
So sad ; ; I don’t think I could ever afford anything from the store itself, but I’ve always wanted to go to Japan just to say I’ve been to the actual stores :< Looks like I'll have to stalk Closet Child a little bit longer when I get the chance to go.
Closet Child is awesome… you can always find these defunct brands there :)
I can’t believe the news about Sexy Dynamite London. It feels like #Punk truly is dying. Noooooooooooo.
”dislike” I really loved that brand :( R.I.P
I love SDL
Very sad!! >_<
I loved Stigmata. This upsets me greatly since it became a subsidary~ Plus Closet Child might raise the prices now because they can… The timing was akward since I was in class and couldn’t help but exclaim my dislike outloud.
Awww! >_< At least Kenzo-A RITUALS is going strong :)
RITUALS is beautiful but soooo expensive T_T
Thats sadd!!! why??
Mo monies >_<
I thinks its a mix of rising price and also the fact that SO many bands have decided to up and quit lately. I don’t know about Japan, but I know that here a lot of people I know shop at places like Hot Topic but only wear the clothes they buy at concerts and clubs…with all the bands no longer doing shows you have nothing to dress up for, therefor no reason to purchase the clothing so prices shoot up more and more to try and make up for loss of business and now….sigh….it has lead to store closings.
In Japan, very few of my friends buy brand items from the stores… most is non-brand or from Closet Child.
I make most of my own clothes, occasionally i find some really nice stuff from thrift stores. Since I live near Dolly Wood they are always dropping off their old historical costumes…a few stitiches here and some black cloth dye and viola! Awesome stuff! lol I dont think Tennessee considers Hot Topic to be brand since we only have about three stores in all of the state.
Dollywood! I must go there some day :O
Really…? That’s unfortunate. I liked the brand but their prices are pretty high and I think that the closing may also be due to the fact that a lot of bands are becoming more mainstream now and straying away from the true spirit of punk which gave them their start, and selling out to bigger corporations for bigger paychecks. I see a lot of kids in my high school who do follow in the vein of traditional punk but from what I remember, punk was about going against society’s norms and not caring about what other people think of you and it also seems that the punk fashion is being adapted into more mainstream fashion and that may also be the reason for a lot of those shops closing down or scaling back.
So, most people are able to find lower costing alternates and go with what’s cheaper and looks just as good as opposed to going with a name brand that will cost over $100 for just one article of clothing.
Sadly, the most popular stores in Harajuku right now are Forever 21 and H&M…