Currently televised to the mass of viewers as part of 2013’s line-up of ITV’s I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, American sitcom actor and game show host, Alfonso Riberio is most often known to most as Carlton Banks in the comedy series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. With the ongoing banter between both of their characters portrayed by Alfonso and Will Smith there has always been comparison of their sense of style. Carlton more likely won as the inferior uptight preppy rich boy with an established classic style rather than that of Will, being a complete opposite; vibrant retro street style of the 90s era.
Stylishness of recent menswear however would perhaps reconsider cousin Carlton to be quite the leading role model to this higher class look. If you watched the show you witnessed the archive of Carlton Banks in his most favoured pieces of well pressed button down shirts tucked into his straight fitted chino’s, boat shoes, belts and Bermuda shorts or the many horizontal striped long sleeve shirts and golf jackets. In contrast to our ever popular attractions of geometric, Aztec, leathers and animal prints, Carlton showed his most flaring taste via the vast variety of ties/ bow ties, V neck slip overs and knitted cardigans either worn or as a signature accessorizing piece to have over on shoulders crossed at the sleeves resting on the chest as a posh opposite to his co-workers and the shenanigans they effortlessly fell into. The grooming details kept up to that fine level of neatness and order also; him never having over grown rugged hair, smart trimmed facial hair, not too outspoken and brash with footwear for the outfit and taking on clothes that fit his 5’5 height rather than swallow him or squeeze on his physique.
To achieve his Fresh Prince look, check out the selected pieces we’ve put together below:
Words by Abisola
Currently televised to the mass of viewers as part of 2013’s line-up of ITV’s I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, American sitcom actor and game show host, Alfonso Riberio is most often known to most as Carlton Banks in the comedy series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. With the ongoing banter between both of their characters portrayed by Alfonso and Will Smith there has always been comparison of their sense of style. Carlton more likely won as the inferior uptight preppy rich boy with an established classic style rather than that of Will, being a complete opposite; vibrant retro street style of the 90s era.
Stylishness of recent menswear however would perhaps reconsider cousin Carlton to be quite the leading role model to this higher class look. If you watched the show you witnessed the archive of Carlton Banks in his most favoured pieces of well pressed button down shirts tucked into his straight fitted chino’s, boat shoes, belts and Bermuda shorts or the many horizontal striped long sleeve shirts and golf jackets. In contrast to our ever popular attractions of geometric, Aztec, leathers and animal prints, Carlton showed his most flaring taste via the vast variety of ties/ bow ties, V neck slip overs and knitted cardigans either worn or as a signature accessorizing piece to have over on shoulders crossed at the sleeves resting on the chest as a posh opposite to his co-workers and the shenanigans they effortlessly fell into. The grooming details kept up to that fine level of neatness and order also; him never having over grown rugged hair, smart trimmed facial hair, not too outspoken and brash with footwear for the outfit and taking on clothes that fit his 5’5 height rather than swallow him or squeeze on his physique.
To achieve his Fresh Prince look, check out the selected pieces we’ve put together below:
Words by Abisola
Here at PAUSE, as well as constantly being on the lookout for the hottest new trends and fashion finds. We also pay close attention to musical happenings, seeking out those emerging artists and groups set for big things in the future. One of these being MDNGHT. Having only surfaced at the beginning of the year with their debut release I Will Lead You On, the group have gone on to release an acclaimed debut EP Into The Night. Having heard the stunning record for ourselves, PAUSE decided to catch up with the boys to find out about their views on fashion and making sweet sweet music…
How would you sum up the group’s musical style?
Ant: “We generally call it ‘live house’. People love to describe people through comparing them to someone else. We don’t tend to do that but some people describe it as Jessie Ware, meets Disclosure. I guess that’s on the right kind of tracks.
Will: “There are quite a few dance bands out there at the moment but I think we’re quite different from the others. As we are a live house band, we create a whole experience on stage which is unique to us as a band. We’ll be doing some gigs next year and over the next few months including a headline gig in Manchester at the Academy which will be a good opportunity for those who might have heard the EP or one of the songs but haven’t seen us live, to see a bit more of what we’re about.”
Disco tinged house is one label that has been attached to your Into The Night EP! Does that seem like a fair judgement, and if so is that a musical avenue you would look to explore further?
Ant: “I’d say the Into Night EP actually isn’t that disco tinged. We will be on more of a disco house vibe for the next set of tracks we’ll release.
Jordan: “I think that we got that tag with ‘I Will Lead You On’ but the EP as a whole is actually darker than that. As Ant said, the other stuff on the way, is definitely more disco tinged.”
Who are your biggest musical influences?
Ant: “As a band, we’re more influenced by DJs and producers. That’s a lot to do with our sound as a group. What started it off for us was the music we heard in clubs in Manchester like Sankeys and Warehouse project. Justin Martin, Finnebassen … People like that have helped to shape our sound”
What made you sign to a new indie label as opposed to anyone more established?
Will: “We wanted to have creative control. That’s a big thing for us.”
Jordan: “Labels that approached us wanted to change things in our music so that was an instant no no for us. We see nothing wrong with some advice or constructive criticism but ultimately we like to have as much control as possible around our sound and direction. We believe in MDNGHT and put a lot of work into what we do so we wanted to go with a label that felt exactly the same.”
Ant: “That’s true. Also, we have all of the benefits of a major label. It has a lot of investment behind it and we can do what we want. We can bring out the music we want and do it at our own pace without any of the unnecessary restraints and restrictions.”
Do you see a particular fashion style developing with the group?
Lloyd: “We all have individual styles so as a band we’re an eclectic mix of unique looks that happen to complement each other well.”
Will: “I’d say our style has changed naturally over the years and not just because we’re artists but also it’s part of growing up. Your style changes more to reflect your personality and where you’re at in your life.”
Ant: “When we’re on stage we’re quite conscious of what we’re wearing and how coordinated we are but we keep it pretty simple really.”
How important do you consider the link to be between music and fashion when it comes to a group or artist?
Lloyd: “Music inspires massive changes in fashion and it has for a long time now. You only need to look back at the major style eras like the 70s, 80s, and 90s to see how that’s worked over the years. Music was really influencing fashion there and it continues to do so. I think there’s a lot of variety and diversity around now which shines through in both music and fashion.”
Ant: “A person’s style is almost like a visual representation of what kind of music they might be into. You can often tell a lot about someone’s musical and lifestyle tastes just from their style.”
What’s your opinion on alternative genres becoming more mainstream within the charts? i.e. house, electronic, drum n bass…
Will: “It’s a really good thing. It’s nice to have some great music in the charts.”
Jordan: “I feel in some ways It’s like the radio has been restricted in the past. Like sometimes you wouldn’t hear a song on the radio just because it’s style didn’t fit a particular sound, whereas that doesn’t really happen so much these days.”
Ant: “Some songs that have recently hit number one have come from being big on the club or underground scene. That’s always a good thing and before, that wouldn’t have really happened as much. It’s encouraging.”
With you being fairly new on the scene, would you say there is a particular direction you want to go in as a group or is it a case of riding the tide?
Will: “We definitely have visions. We want to spread the MDNGHT love and be able to do some great shows for thousands of fans. We’d love to really hit America at some point. That’s the ultimate goal I think. Breaking America would be so great for us, considering how big dance music is getting over there, it could be a good time for us to do it. We’ll see what the future holds but we want these things to happen organically. We’ll put in the groundwork and will continue to produce the best music we can and the rest is out of our hands.”
Jordan: “Yup. We also want to be playing at festivals next summer. Alot of them.”
Interviewed by Matthew Ward
