Hedi Slimane has been photographing the California beach scene for years — long before he decamped permanently from Paris to Los Angeles. He seemed to have a hoot with his “Surf Sounds” collection for spring, dressing a torrent of guys and gals for midnight shenanigans — even showering the audience with YSL-shaped confetti during the finale.
You could sense the designer’s light mood when your eyes adjusted to the pitch-black show venue and you noticed the usual industrial bleachers had been covered in kitschy palm-trees-at-sunset wallpaper. Similar motifs turned up on fancy satin jackets and mohair granny cardigans, which the young models wore with the same nonchalance as black leather jackets, hands thrust deep into their pockets as they barreled down the runway in white high-tops.
There was plenty of Kurt Cobain in the men’s looks: The shaggy hairstyles; the white plastic sunglasses, the plaid shirts; the denim with blown-out knees. And there were plenty of literal thrift-shop styles, a charge frequently leveled at Slimane since his debut grunge collection for fall 2013.
Yet as a styling and merchandising effort, it was hard to fault — except that it was hardly Coachella summery, what with all the knit caps, velvet scarves and fringed suede jackets. The women’s looks were frothier: filmy baby-doll and prairie dresses, each with the requisite leather jacket, utility vest or jeans jacket.
As usual, Slimane’s fashion message was as direct as his original soundtrack was repetitive: The fashion flock will be humming “Harry Dean” for days.