008 - T-Shirts We Love Vol. II

I was a pretty angry teenager. I don’t think I really understood what I was angry about; I couldn’t have put my feelings into coherent words if you had asked me. The first time I heard a punk track - specifically ‘Pretty Vacant’ by the Sex Pistols - it was a revelation. And so began my journey of discovering a subculture that I have never stopped loving. 

Unknown – Billy Idol Smoking (2002)

I remember the first time I saw a picture of Billy IdoI. It was a photo of him when he was the lead singer of Generation X; years before he became synonymous with MTV of the 1980s. His beauty was ethereal, as though some modern-day punk version of Antonius, I developed a full-blown teenage crush. It didn’t last long. As soon as I saw the music video for ‘Hot in the City’ I realised he’d lost his glow. But what he had lost in looks, he more than made up for in new wave rock songs. I was probably the only person in the entire student body of my high school who was listening to his music. I was thrilled when I saw this tee - the iconic typography, the raw attitude of Billy’s pose - for sale at Shades, the legendary record store in Tunalı (#ShoutOutToSüleymanAbi). It was a normal t-shirt. I don’t remember if it had a label, what size it was or what the care instructions were; as soon as I got it home, I butchered it and added the safety pins and voila! I wore it so much during high school (paired with Levi's that were worn to death and so many bracelets that both my forearms were covered to the elbow) that I hardly remember wearing anything else. I wore it again last year to the afterparty of a summer wedding; I was surprised at how many compliments I received. I looked at online archives of t-shirts and Billy Idol merch to see what provenance information I could find on this tee. And nada, zilch, nothing. If any of you readers have seen this specific design before - or even better, have an original uncut version - please drop me a line: sera@gundem.cc. 

Unknown – Black Tee (2002)

I can’t remember where I got this tee from. It was also a normal t-shirt once upon a time. And it was shockingly actually black. You can tell how much a piece of clothing has been loved when the original colour is merely a gradient. I do remember that the kilt pin (that is still on it!) was from my childhood tartan skirt. I made it during the summer after freshman year. I had spent some time visiting my father in New York and had managed to finally persuade him to buy me a pair of lace-up knee high Doc Martens. (While researching for this blog post, I have been HORRİFİED to discover that Doc Martens now sells these boots with zips). I wore my new Doc Martens with my new creation (paired with a pale green skirt of all things, urgh) in the August heat of Ankara and I thought I was so cool. By that autumn, the local shoe stores were selling knock off Doc Martens… 

Spark in the Dark – Sonic Youth (2009) 

I’m somewhat embarrassed to admit that I bought this from Urban Outfitters but I promise back in the early 2010s, it was a cool store! It seems that the brand that made this tee no longer exists. This tee was white, and I am very aware that at this point ‘white’ is merely a suggestion rather than an accurate descriptor. The design is, of course, basically the cover of Sonic Youth’s 1990 album ‘Goo’. It had short sleeves, which I chopped off some years ago. “Niye” means "why” in Turkish and was spray painted on by the boys of Esat Underground who were experimenting and needed some tees. Given that the drawing is based on two key witnesses of the trial of serial murderers Ian Brady and Myra Hindley, having the “just do it” logo beneath NİYE/WHY fits nicely. Believe it or not, I still wear this.