Trend forecaster has revealed that the mid-noughties trend for indie sleaze is on the verge of a comeback. The trend’s features include proactive advertising, outdated technology, and long nonsensical Tumblr-style quotations. These will be dominating Instagram feeds, the high streets, and catwalks.
The aesthetic – which sees people dress in a sexed up version of the classic ‘indie’ style – is largely associated with the first series of Skins in the UK, while internationally it’s been linked to MySpace, and the early days of Tumblr and photographers Terry Richardson and Cobra Snake.
Mandy Lee, a New York trend cycle analyst, stated that there’s ‘obscene amounts of evidence’ that style is returning.
It’s already been seen in advertisements, with Megan Fox breaking the internet with a provocative shoot for Kourtney Kardashian’s brand Skims.
The images featured the pair of underwear-clad women pressing against one another while holding an apple between each other’s lips. Kim recently teamed up with Fendi to create a series of photos in sheer underwear.
Many will be reminded of the sexually-charged billboards that were popular in the 2010s. US brand American Apparel had dozens of adverts banned in the UK and US in that time period as they were branded ‘gratuitous’ by the ASA.
Models were photographed in provocative captions, showing them posing in their tops or bottoms with provocative captions. The photos showed models looking at their bodies rather than the clothes. One image that was used to promote a bodysuit showed the model’s leg spread. Another featured a topless South Asian model wearing jeans with the caption “Made in Bangladesh” covering her modesty.
FEMAIL was informed by Nick Ede, a popular culture expert. He said that the sexualized styles once popular on VICE media owned i–D magazine and photographed by John Rankin Waddell were now ‘carefully curated pieces fashion’ and are set to become a mainstream style.
Trend forecaster has revealed that the mid-noughties trend for indie sleaze will be back. The trend’s key ingredients are outdated technology, proactive advertising, and long, nonsensical Tumblr-style quotations. It’s already seen in advertising, with Megan Fox breaking the internet last month with a provocative shoot for Kourtney Kardashian’s brand Skims.
Kim also recently launched a Fendi collaboration where she posed in sheer, underwear
Pictures showed models posing topless or bottomless with provocative captions – focusing on their bodies not the clothes they were selling
Banned ads
The expert explained that the resurgence of indie sleaze had begun to filter from people’s memories to become a full-on trend.
He continued, “Taking the details from Y2K fashion and making them relevant for Gen Z is a really smart way to create retro style modern visuals. Creditability.”
“The oversexualized styles that scream of old i.D mags or Rankin shoots have been carefully curated pieces fashion styling and brand association.
“With Megan Fox and Kourtney Kim Kardashian making a stir on the red carpets, with their partners creating indie-sleaze looks, it’s a trend set to continue to grow in the coming months.
The trend of hypersexualized fashion also ties in to a new phenomenon dubbed “Horny Girl Autumn”. This has seen Hollywood’s elite take over and see A-listers in barely there bare dresses and PVC, while also engaging with very raunchy PDAs
The indie sleaze movement is not limited to people showing off their sexy side.
Young people are returning to nightclubs after nearly two years of lockdowns, with lavish displays of clubbing that was popular among the indie crowd of the mid-aughts.
In July, revellers were given the long-awaited green light to party in a night described by some as ‘feeling like New Year’, eager party-goers across England piled onto dance floors of venues including Fabric, E1, Ministry of Sound and Egg nightclubs in London, Pryzm in Brighton, Powerhouse Night Club in Newcastle and Moon Acre in Dorset re-opened on the stroke of midnight – the very second that most legal restrictions on social contact were removed.
Young people are returning to nightclubs after nearly two years of no nightlife and lockdowns. This summer, Revellers can be seen in a line in Newcastle.
Friends in real-life! The Skins cast was often seen partying off-screen, too. Left to right: Larissa Wilson (left), Aimee-Ffion Eds (right), Daniel Kaluuya and Dev Patel (right), Nicholas Hoult
This is the aesthetic that sees people wearing a more sophisticated version of the ‘indie’ style. It is most often associated with the first series UK’s Skins. April Pearson plays Michelle in the teen drama. It ran from 2007 to 2013.
Laya Lewis is pictured as Liv Malone in Skins. The show was known for its sex-scenes and drug taking, as well as its indie style.
TV history: Kaya is best known for her role as Effy Stonem in Channel 4 series Skins
April Pearson (Michelle), Mike Bailey (Sid), and April Bailey (Mike) are pictured in the original series of Skins, which was renowned for its club-kid counterculture
Authentic: Skins aired seven series and followed the lives a group teenagers in Bristol.
Pictures soon followed with young, scantily-clad people taking pictures as they let their hair down for first time in months.
These images could have been taken from an episode Skins, a cult TV drama about teenage girls in Bristol, which aired from 2007-2013. It focused on college students who were addicted to drugs, taking them, and having sex.
Another key trend is the return of outdated technology. Bella Hadid was spotted many times in wired headphones as she moved away from airpods.
In December, Vogue said the supermodel was bringing back the wire headphone after being photographed using a pair – while now headphones with a wire are outdated, in the 2010s in was seen as the ultimate hipster thing to do to bring a typewriter to a cafe instead of a latpop.
Trend forecaster Mandy Lee became a viral sensation after sharing a TikTok clip about the return to indie sleaze.
“There is an obscene amount evidence that indie sleaze tumbling aesthetics is returning, we need to discuss it,” she said in a video that has been viewed more then a million times.
Another key trend is the return of outdated technology. Bella Hadid was spotted many times in wired headphones.
Typos were the ultimate hipster move in the late 2000s and early 2010s.
The ‘Indie sleaze” was popularized in the 2000s. This is a natural progression of the trend cycle over 20 years.
“Key characteristics of this trend included provocative advertisements amateur flash photography and extravagant displays of clubbing (bonus point for watermark photography).
Megan Fox teamed up with Machine Gun Kelly last week for a shoot at British GQ. There, she posed naked in only a pistol holder.
Megan shared an image of the cover to Instagram and wrote: “The tale of two outcasts, star-crossed lovers, caught in the throes, of a torrid solar flare of romance featuring: feverish obsession weapons addiction shamans lots blood general mayhem therapy binding rituals chakra soundbats psychedelic Hallucinations organic smoothies, and the kind that would make Lucifer clutch onto his rosary.”
Mandy said, referring to the post: ‘If Megan Fox’s absurd Instagram caption is read, it reads like it was straight off a Tumblr comment.
Megan Fox teamed up with Machine Gun Kelly last week for a shoot at British GQ. There, she posed naked in only a pistol holder.
Mandy said, referring to the post: ‘If Megan Fox’s absurd Instagram caption is read, it reads like it was straight off a Tumblr quote
This hyper-sexualized trend also ties in to a new phenomenon called ‘Horny Girl Autumn’. It has seen Hollywood’s elite pose in barely there bare legs and PVC and Megan Fox, Machine Gun Kelly, Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker are pictured at the VMAs. Megan Fox and Travis Barker were pictured at the VMAs.
Travis Barker was share a snap passionately kissing his fiancé Kourtney Kardashian in a photoset that he uploaded to commemorate her 42nd birthday
Kesha’s debut TikTok was released at the height of Indie Sleaze – like many of the era she had smudged eyeliner
“Also, the rise of obsolete technology back then, it was typewriters & Polaroid. This time around it’s wired headphones & phone cases that mimic outdated tech.
“Mash-ups” were huge in the days of indie sleaze. TikTok was the one who brought bad mashups into mainstream cultural life.
“The pendulum will swing back to hipster indie sleaze in the next few years, just as we saw Y2K take over the last couple of years. This is a person who has lived through it all the first time. I’m excited.
Instagram account @indiesleaze which “documents the decadence mid-late aughts party scene and the indie rock sleaze movement that [ended]In 2012, there were dozens of photos of people in the mid- to late aughts wearing the trend.
Mark Hunter, also known as the cobra serpent, was a photographer who captured dozens of A-listers photos in a amateur flash style at house parties in the late 2000s.
This was evident by many, including those who took a digital camera to a club and uploaded hundreds of pictures online.
One post reads, “The Cobrasnake’s photos were Instagram before Instagram,” which is accompanied by snaps from Kesha, Lindsay Lohan, Steve Aoki and Katy Perry.
It’s one of the newest Y2K trends that is making a comeback.
This year teenagers who were children in 2014 have shared they are already nostalgic for the era and are taking to TikTok for praise their love for the fashion, music and style of the 2010s.
This bizarre trend has teenagers listening to music from the era. The big hits include Arctic Monkeys, Five Seconds of Summer, and Lana Del Ray.
Although it may seem like yesterday to many, teenagers who were born in 2014 are still nostalgic for that era. They use TikTok to express their love for the music, fashion, and style of the 2010s. Pictured: A TikTok user tribute to 2014.
Gen Zers show dozens of clips that include videos and photos of styles from the time, such as tennis skirts, ripped tights, and over-saturated images – just like indie sleaze.
Some are also wearing matte lipstick, American Apparel clothing, and posing in multicolored Starbucks drinks and cigarettes.
The trend has also been adopted by those in their mid-twenties. Many are reactivating Tumblr profiles and showing what they wore when they were teens. Others joke that it shouldn’t be romanticised, as they cringe about their own fashion choices from that era.
Many have pointed to the social networking site Tumblr -‘and cult of Tumblr girls’ – to glorify the aesthetic – with #2014tumblr racking up more than 47 million views on TikTok, while #2014 has more than five million views and #2014aesthetic has a further 1.5 million.
Tumblr girls are women who became famous on the website and were often considered attractive and interested fashion, particularly hipster, and alternative dressing.
They were characterised by posting many photographs of themselves, and having a grungy look.
Indie sleaze is a part of a larger trend for seriously sexed up pieces post-lockdown. There are ultra-slashed tops, bustier tops and sheer ‘naked dresses. Low-rise jeans with exposed Thongs are also on the rise.