Tag Archives: Metal

Do Your Style Well (Or The Metal Gods Will Smite You)

I wrote this a while ago, while I was waiting to meet some of my friends in the parking lot of Shoreline Amphitheater. We met up before the show for some tailgate action before we went in to see Slayer and Cannibal Corpse.

I admit, I’m a metal head.

It kinda fits though, since I am talking about style this week. I got to pull this little bit of writing out of my vault.

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I’m down in Mountain View waiting for my friends to get to Mayhem Festival. We’re gonna grill up some food and throw back a few beers before going in to the Shoreline Amphitheater to see Slayer and a bunch of other bands.

I am a metal head, and Slayer is one of the kings of metal.

So I’m sitting here in this parking lot, and there are metal heads of all types hanging out, throwing down beers, and gearing up for the show.

Of course, what I start thinking about is style. Metal heads all have a particular look going for them, and the folks at this show range from convincingly hardcore to metal geek. Some of these guys out here are probably gonna have a style that women find attractive, and some of them, well, won’t. The type of look that you decide to go for is gonna influence what types of women find you attractive, but pretty much any look will be attractive to a good amount of women.

Assuming you do it well.

Metal heads can definitely be sexy, and if that’s what you are, then there is no reason not to rock your Cannibal Corpse t-shirt and get some big scary tattoos. The trick is to make sure that you pull off the look well, and look well put together, even if the look you are going for is disheveled rocker.

Find clothes that flatter you, and follow good guidelines for fit and matching. A black Napalm Death t-shirt probably isn’t gonna look too good with weird orange pants from Hot Topic. It will also look out of place if you’re wearing $150 True Religion Jeans and nice Kenneth Cole loafers (ask me how I know this).

The best rule to follow when you are figuring out what to wear, and what kind of look to put together is to be deliberate.

I see a lot of men in this parking lot wearing clothes that look like they got them as hand-me-downs, or they bought the clothes because it was what was easy to find and available from Target or JC Penney.

No thought seemed to go into their decision of what to wear, other than to make sure they wore their favorite metal band t-shirts, and then grabbed their crappy jeans, poor fitting jeans and the tennis shoes in their closet.

On the other hand, there are some guys here who have the metal look down. They’ve got jeans and t-shirts that fit well, they’ve got accessories that work with everything else, and it displays a certain attitude. Their haircuts and grooming, while not necessarily nice and neat, are deliberate, and well kept.

This approach to style – being deliberate about your clothing choices – works for any look. If you are an artist, jock, business man, nerd, or (heaven help us) hippy or hipster, you have a choice. You can either be sloppy about the look, or be deliberate about it.

If you are deliberate about your look, chances are that you will get noticed by women much more than if you are completely sloppy about it, and put no thought into your clothing choices.

Now, for some visual examples.

metal-dorks

These kids are the quintessential metal dorks. Yes, I am going a bit overboard to make my point, but they make the point so well. These guys have poor grooming, their clothes fit poorly, and nothing really matches.

These poor guys have had this picture really make the rounds on the internet. Their music is awesome though.

Zakk-Wylde

Now let’s take a look at Zakk Wylde, guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne and Black Label Society.

He’s not a traditional hot guy, or handsome, but he pulls off this metal look very well. Even though he has long hair that isn’t exactly a “neat” look, it looks taken care of.

His clothes match and fit well, and they all go together for the over all look that he gives off. When I see this look, it looks deliberate, and like he makes sure to make sure that he pulls off this look well.

Which one of these guys do you think is more likely to get eyed up by some hotty?

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I used the examples of the metal look in this post because, well, I was about to see Slayer and Cannibal Corpse when I wrote this. Metal was on my mind.

The idea that the way to make this style work, by being deliberate about how you put the look together, applies to any look. I don’t always dress up as a metal head. I wear a suit to work during the week, and I can get dressed pretty nice when I go out.

I was also a bit of a skater kid, and a punk rock kid, and that influences my look from time to time.

No matter what look you put together for yourself, put some thought into it, make sure it looks good, make sure your clothes fit well, and make sure you are creating the right attitude with your look.