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FashionMusicArtCulture

For Jun Takahashi, Rock is the Memo

26 January 2025

Undercover, a cult streetwear label, has distinguished itself among its Japanese contemporaries since its inception in the 1990s Tokyo underground scene by blending subcultures and subversive perspectives. Designer Jun Takahashi's eccentric childhood loves, 1980s European electronic rock bands and painter Josep Baqué, serve as inspiration for their Fall 2025 menswear collection, which continues this trajectory with grungy and near-punk inclinations.

The collection, titled ‘Interface,’ takes Takahashi’s imagination and eye for fine tailoring and delivers a collection that is fantasy-filled in vision yet surprisingly approachable in utility. Each piece was notably inspired by art and music, yet the pull of inspiration did not reflect in the construction of the clothes themselves. Along with featherweight black coats, sporty jackets, and glimmering baseball caps, a parka with the album cover art of obscure 1970s German band Faust adds to the unconventional feel of the season. Takahashi also looked to the English countryside with tweed fabric and tartan prints on an extended lineup of jackets, pants and kilts. Some rugged patchwork of red and navy checks was wrinkled as if it had been passed down after being overly loved.

It was Takahashi veering into Baqué’s comical, creature-filled artwork that lent the collection a layer of whimsy. Silk-padded slippers and padded cotton jackets printed with his comical cartoon monsters recalled Takahashi’s childhood imaginations. The colourful nature of his drawings unfurls a level of gentleness in both sight and structure, a stark contrast to the previous electro-rock themes seen earlier.

One can imagine members of a rock band leaving a smoky late-night venue dressed in the collection—it has the sharpness that the alternative scene warrants, without being too eager. Despite Takahashi’s sincere design intentions, the collection captures the ever-so-popular nonchalant attitude that runs rampant within the current cultural zeitgeist.

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