slash-ion statement (inspiration)

one of axl rose

i remember fifth grade vividly.  i had just moved from brooklyn to the suburbs of new jersey.  it was like i had moved to mars.  everything was SO different.  not surprisingly, i stuck out like a sore thumb (what does that phrase mean anyway?) 

although my musical taste was already pretty diverse, i had not been exposed to heavy metal quite yet.  (that was not on the radar in flatbush, sorry).  my rock consisted of bon jovi.  in jersey, however, heavy metal was reigning supreme...and it showed.  the big hairsprayed hair, extra tight pants, excess of socks...this was the current look if you weren't a skateboarder or nerd.  most of the music, at the time, was beyond my palette.  the screeching, the violent guitar riffs, the heavily made up men was not appealing to me whatsoever.  but then i came across a band called guns n roses.  their song "patience" quickly became one of my favorites.  i was happy to hear that they were considered a heavy metal band.  finally, some common ground!!!  one of the things that i liked best about guns n roses was their style.  axl rocked white tees, bandanas and leather.  slash (pictured above) was the ultimate cool guy with his top hats and baseball caps, ashy grey jeans and concert tee shirts.  and that hair...that glorious hair!  like all the other heavy metal artists, it was BIG.  but i could tell this hair was not manufactured.  it was an authentically, curly, kinky gift from God (and his african american roots).  although i moved away from jersey before the end of the school year, i continued to love the band (who doesn't like "sweet child o mine" or "welcome to the jungle"?).  

i credit slash and axl for the rock influence that's evident in my personal style.  and i thank them for giving me a trinket that would allow me to relate to the cool jersey girls.   


me in slash mode (coney island)


 besos jenna pearle*