While reliving fashion trends, I’ve also been reintroducing Spanish rock music from the ’80s. The Argentinian-based band Soda Stereo has been making noise in my life since I was 12 years old.
This interest started off through my dad, who would play this music loudly with the windows down every Saturday on the way to the golf course. I remember I used to enjoy the loud melodies, but was aware that I didn’t possess enough knowledge to understand the lyric’s meanings.
A few years later, I decided to reconnect with the band’s music and it’s been present in my daily life ever since. I own five of their vinyl LPs and two personalized playlists that contain the same songs in three different versions.
Spotify Unwrapped named them my artist of the decade and I even have a sticker of the band’s logo pasted onto my laptop, safe to say I sincerely enjoy them. During our winter break, I decided to explore their sense of fashion.
The three members of the band – Gustavo Cerati, Charly Alberti and Zeta Bosio – were heavily influenced by what European bands were wearing during the late ’80s. Their uniform was composed of a dark underground style with eyeliner, psychedelic prints and curly, voluminous hairstyles.
One of the bands they took inspiration from to dress up was The Cure, their musicality and aesthetic reigned with the Argentinian band. Through my search of Cerati’s outfits I noticed a pattern of wearing most of the time a beret-like hat that had a kangaroo on it. He always wore it in black but the silhouette varied in all the images and interviews I could find it in.
As a person that appreciates unique looking hats, I found it attractive that this accessory delineated his face and elevated his aura. I wanted that hat desperately, not to look like him, but to transport me into that rich South American rock era of the ’80s.
After that I didn’t bother researching what type of brand the hat belonged to, instead I revisited its pin on Pinterest multiple times a day admiring his vibe. I remember I was sitting through presentations on my fashion history course and a group presented on late ’80s and ’90s main styles.
One of the highlights of this era were those unique hats with a kangaroo symbol, which turned out to be the Kangol brand from the UK. I immediately visited the website and browsed through hundreds of styles trying to search for one of Cerati’s favorites.
The one that caught my attention was the Monty Wool Beret in a bright yellow. This style was worn by Field Marshall Montgomery who wore this type of Kangol beret when he commanded Allied troops in World War II.
What I loved about this beret was the thin line that defines its placement. Now every time I wear it I feel like I belong to South America’s ’80s rock movement, in all its essence.
