God Save The Queen, Long Live The McQueen

In case you didn't already know, the Royal Wedding of William and Kate was uh-maaaazing. He looked smashing in his Irish Guard uniform. She looked stunning in her Sarah Burton-designed Alexander McQueen gown. My fiancée, Prince Harry, looked very dashing himself in his Blues and Royals (You are all invited to our wedding by the way, which will take place promptly in 5-10 years. Kisses!). Pippa Middleton also turned heads in another dress by the house of McQueen. I might also add that Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II wore yellow. Very on trend Ma'am. On trend, indeed.

Elton and David were in attendance, as were others of the "Royal (but of a different sort than the Madges and the Middleton)" folk, among them, Posh and Becks, and Rowan Atkinson. Fashion was very much on the front lines (as one can always expect with these things) and this was all fascinating, but I was momentarily distracted by trees. You think I'm being sarcastic, but I'm actually not. There were TREES in the Abbey, actual living trees! And I have to say, it was one of the best decisions they made in the field of decorum, not just because of the addition of the colour (which played magnificently with the red, white, and gold) but also because they drew attention to the love that the couple has been so very characterized by for the duration of this courtship. It's a natural love, one that is real, not manufactured or forced like we saw with Charles and Diana. 

That love was on display today, as much as the two tried to restrain it with the royal expectancy of chaste and moral public behaviour (Which we might translate for the low-brow among you as "boring". This is, of course,  excepting the original People's Princess, Diana; Fergie's recent dramas; and anything Prince Harry has done, ever.). They couldn't help but smile broadly through out, which left me in quite a state, especially seeing as I had completely used all my tissues by the time Kate made it to the altar in the gorgeous McQueen dress. I couldn't even help myself, I got completely worked up and sentimental, sighing with the "I will"s, giggling at one of the choir boys' eyebrows dancing a jig as he sang, crinkling my brow in empathy as Lizzy shed a tear, and letting out a wail when the newly wedded Cambridges mounted their little carriage and Duchess Catherine  turned to her husband and said through her wide grin "I am so happy!" I'm not even going to get into the doubling up of the Royal Kiss at Buckingham Palace. Dehydration is simply far too close for comfort, and would be a stain on this wonderful day. 

Say what you want about the Royal Family, there are few in the world capable of inspiring such pure fantasy in the minds and hearts of people. I was not yet born when Charles and Diana married in 1981, and as a result, I missed out on one of the grandest moments in modern culture. As magical as the story of Lady Di was, I think the one that is now in the works for Kate Middleton is one that is even more of a bedtime story than hers. By virtue of being a commoner who marries into royalty, not because she had a title, or certain type of blood, but purely for love, Kate Middleton keeps our wildest dreams and imaginations alive. And if there was any lingering doubt, when she stepped out in that McQueen dress, she proved that those flights of fancy will always live on... Necause true fairytales? They are immortal. 

God save the Queen, and long live the McQueen.

Peace, love, and floating,

Gill Ford

Have A Hoppy Easter!

I sent you models for Valentine's Day, so I suppose I should continue the trend. And because I care so much, I've taken the time to rummage in about in the historical vaults (okay, not so historic, but not like... yesterday) for  mixed media. I have triumphantly emerged with a commercial, a fashion show, and an editorial. I bet you're all expecting Sasha Pivovarova in Louis Vuitton's bunny ears, right? If that's the case, you're completely wrong (though, Sasha offers a brief introduction to her own friend of the Leporidae variety in Les filles en Vogue). No, for the darling readers of my blog, I give you the Easter Bunny himself. Who may or may not also be HRH Alexander McQueen (may he rest in peace). Or Robert Buckley.

Kate Moss for Basement's "Dream Collection" by Martín Romanella (2011)

Alexander McQueen - Spring/Summer 2009

"Street Chic" by Peter Lindbergh

Harper's Bazaar US - March 2009

Catherine McNeil and Robert Buckley

 

Happy Easter my fashionable, Not-So-Swedish friends! May your scavenging be successful, and your eggs aplenty. Kate Moss's most certainly are.

Peace, love, and floating,

Gill Ford

Photos courtesy of tFS user jacobs

On The Move

#justslayin RT @Ceejayklmnop: Catherine McNeil & Maryna Linchuk are now with @FordModels! Two more stunning girls on their roster.about 1 hour ago via TweetDeck

Please try to comprehend how incandescently happy this made me. The rumours are true... Cat McNeil is still alive! Bearing in mind she's been breaking for what seems like ages now, who knows when this new partnership will turn out any new work, but I'm very happy to see there's some positive movement on the front. Setting aside all the hairier politics... is this contract just with New York? Or has Ford taken over for Next overseas as well? 
Cat McNeil went bobbed and black the past November, with these the only official look at the new 'do 
Sweet deal for Maryna as well, who also booked the Dolce & Gabbana Fall/Winter 2011 campaign recently, and features on the cover of Vogue Russia for May. Congratulations! Best of luck with the new agency!
Cover girl and new Ford model, Maryna Linchuk
Well, things to see, people to do! May all our questions be answered quite soon! 
Peace, love, and floating,Gill Ford
Photos courtesy of tFS users candlebougie and tarsha

But In The Cultural Sense, I Just Speak In Future Tense

Can we PLEASE talk about Lady Gaga's newest single, "Judas"?

This monstrosity of a song was leaked (or, shall we say 'leaked') on April 15th, four days earlier than expected by the majority of the world's population. And I mean it, this is a monster of a song. Upon hearing it for the first time, I could only describe it as "what would happen if you locked ABBA in an asylum and made them sing hardcore German house music". There's a sort of schizophrenia to the track, with Gaga demonstrating her soft spot for 80s pop during the chorus (which actually has me thinking a lot of Cascada's "Everytime We Touch"), but evidently torn between this and modern industrial techno.

It's very much a successor to the throne previously held by "Poker Face" and "Bad Romance", but at it's lighter points, it always feels more sparkles and sequins than "Poker Face", and at it's darkest, it is definitely more deranged than "Bad Romance". Conceptually, the swinging between the two extremes works in Gaga's favour, as the song is about a woman torn between two men (Jesus and Judas, but strip away the Biblical references and thematically, it's just a bad romance with a good romance thrown into the mix) who are essentially polar opposites of good and evil. But it seems that this might prove to be a pitfall for a lot of fans and critics alike, with more than one declaring that the chorus sounds like it comes from another song. That's all well and good, but Gaga thrives on the conceptual side of music, so there is certainly the argument to be made for judgement being held specifically in that arena.

I think it's safe to say that no one is safe from Mother Monster. In all honesty, can you not just picture in your minds all of the strictly religious parents marking April 19th as the day that they rid their homes of anything that might allow their children to get their hands on this song? But then, beyond all expectations -- actually, I take that back, I think it's about time we expect the unexpected from Lady Gaga -- the song catches everyone off guard and appears early? Holy balls, you can't protect yourself, and quite frankly, it's useless to try against a woman clearly more skilled in guerrilla warfare than Che Guevara and Fidel Castro.

Earlier in this post, I put 'leaked' in quotation marks. Well, for those of you who aren't aware, Judas betrayed Jesus to the Jews, and then Jesus was crucified by the Romans. One might interpret the leaking of a highly anticipated single as being a betrayal of Gaga's trust. Now, I'm not saying that Gaga necessarily leaked the song on a fake Youtube account because the concept fit oh so perfectly with the title of the song. But I might be implying that. Strongly.

It helps if you think about the dates as well. Four days prior to the actual release date? Forgive me if I'm not clear on my Biblical facts... but didn't Judas betray Jesus four days before the Resurrection? And I don't think there is any doubt that dates were important to Gaga in deciding when this song would released, with the proposed drop falling scandalously close to Easter.

I'm not positive on any of this, obviously. But with the amount of thought that Gaga puts into everything she does certainly makes this all plausible. Lord knows she's been verbally crucified in the last few days as a result of this song, which is, admittedly, rather confrontational from the Christian perspective (Hold on to your holy water though, the video will be one hell of a ride; I daresay Amanda Ware would call it "a wet fish to the face".); but I wonder what we can expect from Gaga on the 19th? Attendees of that Nashville show, be warily excited for what's in store: I have a feeling she might have something special brewing for you...

So what do you reckon? Are you in love with "Judas"? Or has Gaga preyed on religion one too many times?

Peace, love, and floating,
Gill Ford

I'm Your Prostitute, You Gon' Get Some

The Kills - Midnight Boom - 2008

The Kills have been one of my favorite bands for months now (this post is very much overdue), and Midnight Boom is the record that I've been listening to pretty much nonstop since the New Year. Why am I so completely and obviously obsessed with VV and Hotel at this point in time? Well, let me see...

Never mind that their next record, Blood Pressures, is out TODAY...

Never mind that Alison Mosshart is a member of The Dead Weather and bffs with Jack White...

Never mind that Jamie Hince is marrying HRH Kate (that would be Moss, by the way, not Middleton)...

Never mind that they account for 2/3 of Polaroid and photobooth net incomes...

Never mind that they are effortlessly bad-ass and laidback at the same time...

You can take your pick, really. But when it comes down to it, I appreciate the musical/performance side of what they're all about. Well, that, and it was hilarious when Mosshart wore the same leopard print blouse to every show for like a year. You know what, though? Being rough around the edges never hurt anyone; in fact,  the Kills are the perfect arty garage rock/post punk revival bands because they have the street cred and antics to go along with their beat-driven music. And that leopard print blouse was comfortable, dammit.

*And don't forget to tack on the missing track "Night Train" if you aren't downloading from the UK. The whole record is like going on a bender, with the final track "Goodnight Bad Morning" representing your hangover. But with "Night Train" added on the end, you'll be ready to head back out on the town that night. Or at least drive off into the sun in a blaze of glory... Yeah, stay in school, kids.

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PJ Harvey - Let England Shake - 2011

I was reading reviews for PJ Harvey's newest record a week or so after it was released (I like to do this on occasion, to make sure that the critics aren't critically inept), and was most taken by the review by NME's Mike Williams. He proclaimed: "Francis Ford Coppola can lay claim to the war movie. Ernest Hemingway the war novel. Polly Jean Harvey, a 41-year-old from Dorset, has claimed the war album." NME gave the record a ten star rating (out of ten), and also awarded it the title "[PJ Harvey's] most brilliant record to date". As I was completely in awe of it myself, and I can't quite think of any better way of describing it, to be honest. So I'll just leave it at that. 

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Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes - 2011

I love to play up my not so Swedish side on this blog, but there are times when you need to show a bit of Swedish blood love/lust. In no case is this more evident than that of Lykke Li's new record, Wounded Rhymes. My brother is not a fan, but aside for an occasional affinity for ABBA, he's got limited and questionable taste in music. Wounded Rhymes is well in the running for best record of 2011 in my opinion. Asked what type of music it is by a friend, I replied hesitantly with "tribal alternative indie electro-rock". And I can't really think of a better way to describe it. The drums are an enormous part of the album, pounding like an ominous heartbeat through each track; it's an impeccable example of how beat driven a lot of music out of Scandinavia is right now. You get Irish tin whistles here and there too, adding a wistful tinge to songs like "Love Out of Lust". Oh, you get all the regular bits like guitar, bass and synths too, by the way. In case you were starting to think this was going to sound like what the White Stripes (RIP) would have if they were around when Beowulf was written (having said that, some sections do sound like they might be very comfortable there).

Beyond being brilliant in the instrumental landscapes it paints, this record is also incredible lyrically. You get the sense that each song is simply a rendering of a poem from some anonymous poet, never intending the words on the page to be seen by any eyes other their own, and thus felt free to be unrestrainedly honest. You appreciate that freedom listening, because it allows for the expression of feelings that are much stronger and more heartfelt than a lot of what you get from other artists these days. I stress that 'artist,' by the way. With Wounded Rhymes, Lykke Li and producer Björn Yttling (of Peter Bjorn and John) have created a record that is not only great music, but also art. And no, those don't always go hand in hand.

*Also, Lykke would like everyone to know that "Get Some" is about power. Not sex. Yes, I'm aware that "I'm your prostitute, you gon' get some" doesn't exactly deter from this common misconception.

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It is now going on 2:30, and I have an essay that wants finishing (That Beowulf reference was a bit of a hint as to where my mind's at right now... here's to Tolkien, Galadriel, and "the backward view"!). Part 2 of La Vrai Trésor de Christian Dior soon to come, as well as a feature on a certain Alice in Wondøland...

Peace, love, and floating,
Gill Ford