What would happen if local bands and local designers got together and threw a party? That question was answered Friday, February 22 at the Crosstown Station, located at 1522 McGee.

The Rock and Roll Fashion show set out to pair local bands and designers together and entertain the masses at the same time. The event was hosted by 96.5 the Buzz's Jeriney, of "Homegrown Buzz," touting a band line-up that included The Life and Times, and should have been a local success, or at least an entertaining way to spend a Friday night.

The complete lack of planning for this event was appalling. No one seemed to know if tickets were necessary, how much they cost, or what time the show was. Hell, we don’t even think anyone realized it was a 21+ show until less than a week before the actual event. Tickets ended up being $7 and $12 depending on if you wanted VIP access or not.

Jeriney

Turns out, it didn't matter. Anyone could have signed up for VIP, which basically meant signing up for the Camel mailing list. Are you ready to hear what the perks were for signing up to be a fabulous rock and roll fashion show VIP?

Two free packs of those lovely chemical packed cigarettes (General Surgeon Warning posters decorated the walls of the venue), a lovely metal cigarette carrying case in the shape of a camera that also doubled as a lighter, free first-come-first-serve tickets to the upcoming Spoon concert, a cheap airbrush tattoo that was supposed to last two days, but started fading by the end of the night, and a t-shirt, which may have been the best part of being a VIP.

We feel sorry for all the people that pitched in the extra $5.The VIP pass also included privileged access to a separate upper floor, where the airbrush tattooing and T-shirt making occurred. There was also free food for all VIP members, which included something along the lines of grapes and finger sandwiches, all of which looked less than appetizing.

The drink prices were outrageous! Because this was the first Kansas City fashion show, we were expecting drink prices to be somewhat reasonable, but they were nothing of the sort. A captain and coke cost $6.50 and let us tell you, there was not even close to enough alcohol in it. Although this proves what lushes we are, we had about 4-5 captain and cokes, 2 beers, and a half a glass of wine, and not one bone in either of our bodies felt like it was on its way to a good buzz.

The drinks didn't do it and neither did the first and second fashion designers. The band Paper Cities took the stage first with their brand of local emo music, sharing the stage with models wearing Happy Rhino and Nathaniel Renewal clothing lines. While the band was not that entertaining, the clothes were definite attention-getters.

When clothes make a size 0 look like a size 14, that’s a problem, especially for all us average-sized people in the audience. We vaguely remember a foofy yellow or orange skirt that brought Sir Mix-A-Lots' "Baby got back" and Queen's "Fat Bottom Girls" to mind. Shortly after, out came a pair of red pleather pants that made hookers look classy. We wouldn't recommend these for a Halloween costume, let alone a night out on the town.

To listen to the band and form your opinion, check out their myspace page http://www.myspace.com/papercitiesrock. To see the clothes, check out www.myspace.com/happyrhino and http://www.myspace.com/nathaniel_renewal  

There were a couple of designers whose visions entailed the models standing frozen in a row on the stage, until it was their turn to walk. This was distracting, and blocked the audience's view of the bands. Some people obviously paid to see the bands, not the models and their "Model Wall" sprawled across the stage.

The next act to follow was a band called Delorean, which played what can best be described as '80s influenced, vox and keyboard heavy, kind of likeable wedding band music while MIM Designs and Take A Halliday clothing lines were featured. Their set highlight was a very spunky rendition of Simple Mind's "Don't You (Forget about Me)." The sophistication and originality the band brought to the song offset the fact that most of the audience knew the words. It also made them one of the memorable moments of the night. To hear some the band's music go to http://www.myspace.com/deloreanband.

One of the clothing designers, MIM, who took on the annoying concept of the "Model Wall," apparently also took on the concept of making ugly, cheaply thrown together street clothes. The jeans were cute, but looked like they were picked up at the closest target and thrown on the models. The shirts looked like several swatches of fabric cheaply sewn together by a three year-old in a sweatshop. Sadly, we see many people buying into this "fashion forward" look. We can picture the shirts of MIM on frat boys and sorority girls all throughout the city. To get a look at the clothes, minus the model wall go to http://www.myspace.com/mimdesigns and http://www.myspace.com/takeahalliday.

The highlight of the night came when Walter Alias took the stage. While the band lacked talent, they were still the best band to perform, the most well dressed, and best looking (aside from the front man) of the night. They were paired with the clothing boutique Envolve and Designer Christian Micheal Shuster. The corporate world just got sexy in Kansas City. The look of these clothes was something you would see on Boston Legal, or Shark, both of which are pretty good TV shows if you ever have time to sit and watch.

One male model looked like he came straight from the movie A Clockwork Orange. He wore a black bowler/derby hat, and had his formal black pants tucked into some faded leather boots, surprisingly, also black. After giving this designer much praise among our friends, we found out that all he did was design the ties for the models. We don't even remember what color the model's tie was, or that he was wearing one at all. The credit for the clothes goes to the new Kansas City Boutique, Envolve.

Like the other bands Walter Alias was not an amazing band but its cover of Frou Frou's "Let Go" made them stand out. That and the fact that they played two different sets in an attempt to make people forget that the Life and Times were supposed to play, but fell ill at the last moment. Listen to some of the band's music at http://www.myspace.com/walteralias.

The intersession music probably would have worked better with the runway than the actual bands. The best music of the night was played during the breaks as the bands set up. The audience mingled and shimmied to the likes of Cake's "The Distance," Hot Hot Heat's "Middle of Nowhere," Prodigy's "Smack My Bitch Up," and so much more. Whoever put together the mixtape clearly surpassed the bands that played during the evening.

The fantastic hair was done by Deyo Fahl Concept Salon and the stellar make-up was handled by local make-up artists. The fact that some of the models were shaped like "real women" and not the pixie-stick figures plastered all over magazines was also greatly appreciated. Who knew big girls could be cute and have fun too!

One suggestion before holding the next fashion show would be to add another stage to avoid some of the awkwardness of this one. As the models strutted their stuff on the same stage on which the bands played - plus a few feet of additional floor space - they often blocked the view of whoever was playing.

Overall this event was fantastic. It didn't matter that the clothes were crappy, or that the bands could have been better. It was a good time with good friends and we can't wait until the next show!

http://www.myspace.com/rock_n_fashion
http://www.kansascity.com/238/story/504571.html
http://www.myspace.com/crosstownstation

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