Getting dressed up at home with Australian musicians

Because dressing up to stay in has its perks.

As Australia begins the slow process of opening up from lockdown, many of us are thinking about the state of our wardrobes. We’ve pretty much only been wearing tracksuit pants and sweatshirts for the past two months. But on certain days we’ve dressed up – dressed for success, if you will, based on the psychological idea that what you’re wearing can improve your attentiveness, confidence, and motivation.

It’s hard-working from home, as many people still will be, but apparently even harder if you don’t have a shower and put some shoes on. As lots of us have also found, listening to a pick-me-up tune or watching an inspiring movie can really set the tone for the day or the week ahead too.

As we slowly start to venture out to see our friends and colleagues face-to-face, we asked some of our favourite musicians (who, let’s face it, are annoyingly stylish day-to-day compared to ourselves) about dressing for success, music to motivate you, and other things to get you in the mood for leaving the couch and facing the world.

Clea

Brisbane-based musician Clea (it’s pronounced ‘clay’) is a bit of a force to be reckoned with. Her latest single ‘Soft Blow To The Head’ and its accompanying video showcased not just her musical chops, but her fashion skills too. She’s spent lockdown making music and breathing in clean country air on a 100-acre property just outside Boonah, QLD – jealous! – but how does she get ready to face the world when business comes knocking?

Her Zoom meeting outfit of choice, she tells us, is a “white puffy-sleeved blouse and a pair of silver hair clips,” and to psyche herself up for the day ahead she listens to Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’, Al Green’s ‘Tired of Being Alone’ and Air’s ‘Femme D’Argent’. Here, she’s wearing one of her favourite Australian labels, Romance Was Born.

Lime Cordiale

Brothers Oli and Louis Leimbach of pop-rock duo Lime Cordiales’s brand of laid-back, fun-loving cool has seen them tour the world performing their infectious tunes to sold-out rooms and scores of festival-goers.

It’s seen them sign a co-management deal with Post Malone, and amass over 95 million streams – and all before they’ve released their second LP 14 steps to a better you, which comes out July 10. “We’ve spent iso at home on the Northern Beaches of Sydney,” Oli shares. “We’ve been living in a large house with eight different people for the last year. Luckily, there’s enough space to avoid going insane.”

What do they wear for Zoom meetings? “My mate just gave me this weird ’70s shirt that has a turtleneck sewn into the inside collar,” Louis shares. “It doesn’t look as ridiculous as it feels. It reminds me of those flexi pants that look like denim jeans but are pretty much tights.”

“We tend to do our Zoom calls in our studio, which is an old run-down helicopter hanger,” Oli adds. “It’s got these seedy old brick walls and a bunch of junk in the background. Better than a boring old white wall though.” Their latest fashion inspiration, they add, is “the oversized suits that Michael Jordan keeps wearing in the Netflix series The Last Dance.” Here they’re wearing one of their favourite Australian brands, Pool.

Perto

Musical wunderkind Perto is without a doubt one of Australia’s most promising young artists, and he’s only 18. He’s hit the studio with some of the world’s biggest acts, had millions of streams, and toured the world performing his eclectic electronic sets to legions of devoted fans. Fittingly, he’s wearing one of Melbourne’s coolest brands, Garbage.tv.

Which movie has most inspired him during lockdown? “Uncut Gems for sure. I don’t really watch movies that much, but the wardrobe and soundtrack are incredible.” His biggest fashion inspiration from cinema, however, is Howl of the famed Studio Ghibli animation Howl’s Moving Castle. “I want his hair, coat and necklace so bad! I’d wear them every day.” To pump himself up for a big day, Perto listens to Lil B’s ‘B.O.R.’, Aphex Twin’s ‘Xtal’ and Lucki’s ‘Faith’.

Haiku Hands

Vogue described Haiku Hands as “the electro-rave-pop trio that know how to put on a show,” so it’s no surprise that they’re wearing show-stopping outfits by Moncler to showcase their idea of dressing for success. “Michael Jordan is probably our biggest inspiration right now,” Bea shares. “His clothing is so big and comfortable. I’ve also really been loving an Instagram called @_false_face. If the future is face masks, we should all probably be doing it in style.”

Mie adds that “all of the students in Sister Act 2” have inspired her sartorial sensibilities lately. Claire adds that the tracks that have been motivating her each day are Saint Jhn’s ‘Roses (Imanbek Remix)’, Nicky Jam’s ‘Whine Up’, and anything by Frank Ocean. As much as we love Claire’s selection, it’s definitely Haiku Hand’s latest single ‘M*nbitch‘ that we’ve been shaking our asses to.

Rinse

Rinse is the solo project of Queensland-based musician Joe Agius. Funnily enough, Rinse’s first release was the ‘hamster calling’ – the viral filter which was used over 350 million times and still appears in memes to this day. His second release was his first official single under the Rinse moniker called ’Tell Me Tell Me Tell Me’. It premiered on The Fader who described the song as “a shimmering and soaring post-punk plea for sanity.”

The tracks that he’s using to motivate him each day include The Charlatans’ ‘Can’t Get Out Of Bed’, Planet 1999’s ‘Party’ and Traffik Island’s ‘Ulla Dulla’, while Isabelle’s office from the Nintendo Switch game Animal Crossing has provided the background to most of his business Zoom calls. He may be dressed slick in Pool for this portrait, but lately, when it comes to jumping on Zoom for a meeting, he’s just grabbed “whatever doesn’t have wrinkles.” His lockdown fashion inspiration has been Tom Cruise in Risky Business, but mostly he’s been rewatching old episodes of The X-Files.

Georgia June

Georgia June, the lead singer of her eponymous band, is no stranger to capturing the attention of everyone in the room. On stage, her powerful vocals mean that all eyes are on her. Fittingly, she’s wearing a voluminous Moncler jacket in the colour of confidence: red. But day to day, Georgia dresses for success in a different way. Her fashion inspiration? “Probably Meg Ryan’s character Kathleen Kelly from You’ve Got Mail,” Georgia shares. “She wears lots of vests and does the librarian chic thing, which I adore!”

Her top recommendations for songs to get you going in the morning are Arlo Parks’s ‘Eugene’, Ben Howard’s ‘Rivers in Your Mouth’ and Seekae’s ‘Another’. Georgia can’t wait for the world to reopen. “I’m in denial about the no gigs situation,” she shares. “My Zoom background is a crowd of people at Enmore Theatre!”

East Av3

Adelaide’s East Av3 are the super fresh new act who’ve stormed the scene with their intoxicating, bombastic brand of hip-hop and rap – their track ‘Rugrat$’ demands to be driven around to. Here, they’re mixing Nike and Alta Munted for their outfits, but on work calls Liam says he’s been wearing “nothing — I’m a silky smooth baby.” (We’re 99 per cent sure he’s joking.)

Nic, on the other hand, is taking his fashion inspiration from Toby McGuire’s Spider-Man, as well as everyone in Guy Ritchie’s films. Addy adds that his top tracks right now are Led Zeppelin’s ‘Heartbreaker’, Stellie’s ‘How do we look so good?’, and East Av3’s own ‘Le Labo’.

Styling credits

LOOK ONE
CLEA WEARS ROMANCE WAS BORN 

LOOK TWO
LIME CORDIALE WEARS POOL

LOOK THREE
PERTO WEARS GARBAGE TV

LOOK FOUR
HAIKU HANDS WEARS MONCLER

LOOK FIVE
RINSE WEARS POOL

LOOK SIX
GEORGIA JUNE WEARS MONCLER

LOOK SEVEN
EAST AV3 WEARS NIKE AND ALTA MUNTED