When Tom Dunne of The Spikes was a model in Dublin and with MGM in LA, one of the worst parts of the job was being told what to wear.
“You were really a clothes-hanger, and you not only had to wear what you were given but you also had to look as if you were comfortable in it,” he says. “I really like to choose clothes that make me stand out as an individual rather than make me look like I’m just part of the herd.”
And this is a fashion policy that works for The Spikes as well. “How a band looks is really important as far as I’m concerned. So for me there are too many bands wearing skinny jeans, black jackets and t-shirts. I might like to dress like that the odd time if I feel like it. But if you want your band to stand out, then I don’t see the point of dressing up in a uniform and ending up looking like all the other bands.
“We all feel the same about that, so when The Spikes play live we’ll wear mad flared shirts, cravats, hats or whatever suits the way we want to project ourselves. We have longish hair too, so there’s a strong retro thing about The Spikes, but we don’t want to either sound or look like any other band.”
As if to prove the point, Dunne refers to his own preferred style of big colours worn at a volume redolent of the '70s, so, not surprisingly, among the musicians he admires most for their dress senses are David Bowie and Robert Plant.
“I like the way they dress so that it reflects their individuality. That’s what’s important to me about whatever I wear.”
All of which makes sense, especially when you consider that The Spikes’ music is heavily influenced by the music of the '70s, with hints of later decades blended discreetly within an overall mix that contains shades of a new-age mod style too. Asked to name his very favourite item of clothing, Dunne refers to a strange blue jumper he has with a big rip down the middle.
“It used to belong to an old girlfriend and I’ve worn it a few times on stage and it’s got a big tear down the front, but I kinda like it,” he says.
His awareness of the interconnectedness of rock’n’roll and fashion, a relationship that dates way back to Elvis, comes through in some of the band’s songs.
“We have this particular song in our set called ‘Super Modern Queen’,” he says. “It’s all about the untouchability of the modern supermodel. It’s not so much a put-down of the fashion industry as a look at how these models are quite unreal and untouchable to the ordinary person.”
Tom doesn’t actually have regular places he shops for clothes. “I like to look out for vintage styles in some of the shops around Dublin,” he says, “and I often pick up interesting stuff when I’m abroad.”
So we presume he feels no urgency about checking out the latest fashions, then?
“None at all. I tend to avoid anything that makes me feel that somebody else is likely to be wearing something I’ve got on, so I avoid buying the big name labels. I don’t want to be a walking advertisement for anybody.”