Rock Out with Your Frock Out

Words by Faran Krentcil 

I was really mad at John Galliano, so I wore his pink princess dress in the dirt. It was designer dirt, I guess—backstage Coachella soil, anyway—but the finely-tailored whiffs of pink Dior chiffon didn’t care. They wilted as The Kills blared “Black Balloon” in the fading desert sun, and by time Arcade Fire climbed onto the main stage around 8 p.m., my frock was coated in a not-so-fine layer of silt, about the same color as Bumble and Bumble Blondish hair powder. I screamed along with the band’s classic song “Rebellion”—it’s easy even if you don’t know the words; you just yell “Lies! Lies!” at the top of your lungs until you get really mad at every teacher you’ve ever had—and glanced down at the ruins of my once-hallowed frock. It was a grimy whirl of earth and fire (well, cigarette ash, anyway) that Kills’ frontwoman proclaimed “very rock n’ roll, actually” when we collided in the port-a-potties later that night. I was thrilled.

I was also in my 20s, the time of life when “adulting” feels like a faraway verb instead of a daily practice. And while a love of too-loud music continues to thump through my veins, the idea of dressing like a pixie in a snit no longer feels fun, cool, or rebellious. Actually, it feels like a costume—the last thing I want to wear as an actual grown-up who is finally confident in her body, her style, and her ability to understand the fine print of a mortgage as well as the finer points of the new Maggie Rogers album. (Verdict: It’s excellent, and one of the few records that celebrates female friendships with the same undeniable pulse as romantic love. Get into it.)

At the same time, it’s undeniable that after four years of pandemic dormancy, capital-C Concerts are back. Last year, Ticketmaster sold over half a billion tickets for in-person events worldwide, a 13 percent increase from the year before. Live Nation reported that 2023 was its biggest year ever for concerts and festivals, with 145 million people showing up for over 50,000 events. Taylor Swift alone grossed over $1 billion from her epic Eras Tour, while Beyonce’s iconic Renaissance tour reported a $579 million intake, and over 2.7 million fans showing up—including Timothee and Kylie, obvs—to proclaim they were crazy in love with the pop empress. Tiny shows are back, too, at least according to The Coolest People in the World, otherwise known as underage art school students. “I go to at least one live show a week, usually more like two or three,” said Layla Blue Rudolph, 21, who studies photography and printmaking in New York City. “The underground music world is so alive right now.” Rudolph has just completed her latest music zine, a compilation of interviews with bands we mortals are not hip enough to know anything about. (Weathergirl? Le Bang? Mmmkay.)

Rudolph and her friends wear thrifted baby tees and threadbare dip-dyed cargo pants that would make any Blumarine designer throw a jealous fit. Other fashion infants don vintage prom dresses to scream their guts out on Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts Tour. For those of us who buy concert tickets and Botox sessions in equal measure, the question remains: How do we dress like adults and also dress like we belong at the festivals where we sport our hard-earned wristbands?

The Look:

Blue Jeans by Lana Del Rey

“You can’t go wrong with a white tank top and an amazing pair of jeans”

“I feel like you can’t go wrong with a white tank top and an amazing pair of jeans,” says Rachel Antonoff, the New York-based fashion designer who has dressed singing starlets like Zooey Deschanel and Hailee Steinfeld for various performances, along with musical theater babes like Tony-winner Ali Stroker. A veteran of New York’s underground punk scene in the late ‘90s, Antonoff has also traded her trademark vintage satin heels for a sturdy pair of Converse. “You need closed-toed shoes if you’re short like me,” she says, “because if it’s a concert, you’re going to get stepped on.” Antonoff can often be seen backstage at concerts with her brother, Grammy Award-winning producer Jack Antonoff, the frontman for the rock group Bleachers who also helps Taylor Swift and Lana del Rey craft their well-loved albums. But she views the most divisive of all concert accessories—the backstage lanyard pass—as less of an in-crowd fashion statement and more of a memory token. “I think keeping any memento of a fun experience is cool!” she says. “Plus, I’m a pack rat.” This summer, Antonoff’s daisy-embroidered denim jumpsuit has been in especially high demand with concertgoers, thanks to its hippie vibes and hidden pockets, a quiet blessing when you need to stash an extra phone charger, a joint, and both of your Rhode lip gloss colors because you can’t make up your mind.

The Look:

Aurora by Daisy Jones and the Six

“Do not wear something super-tight!” advises Nora Kirkpatrick, film director, TV writer, and the accordion player for the band Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. Even on a blustery day, the California native says the heat generated by dancing crowds will make you sweat—and make clingy or non-porous fabrics like “vegan” (read: plastic) leather pants and elasticated tube tops a bad bet. “Lately, I’ve been wearing vintage lace blouses under suit vests,” she says, with shirts from Isabel Marant, Zimmermann, and Roberto Cavalli coming out on top. Kirkpatrick recommends layering them with a leather miniskirt and boots you don’t mind getting dirty—Doc Martens or old Balenciaga motorcycle stompers will do. Ensuring you have a good floppy sun hat is also key, perhaps a straw version from Gucci that does the double duty of holding back hair and blocking rays (or hiding tears) during your favorite songs. And if Kirkpatrick’s recommendation of swingy vintage eyelet tops and mud-caked black boots sounds like a Daisy Jones and the Six reference, you’re not wrong. Kirkpatrick is one of the Emmy-nominated writers and producers on that music-centered show.

The Look:

Glitter by Tyler, the Creator

“Most of the people will be seeing your face more than your clothes”

“You have to remember that a concert is essentially a light show,” says Violette Serrat, the Guerlain creative director and former Dior makeup maven who has seen concert queens like Rihanna and Madonna on two continents. “And really, most people will be seeing your face more than your clothes.” Serrat pairs black jersey dresses from Celine and The Frankie Shop with a deep red lip and glitter scattered across her cheekbones and in the outer corners of her eyelids. “You want your favorite features to catch the lights,” she says, “and honestly, you do not want to wear foundation if you can help it, because you will probably get very sweaty, and a heavier makeup look could lead to breaking out. Just do sunscreen, concealer, a lip if you want, and then the glitter. It’s much more modern and fun, and when you take selfies during the show, you will have all the highlighter you need in the glitter itself.” As for shoes, Serrat says a good sneaker like Veja or a cowboy boot are both great—as long as there’s no heel. “Whatever you do, go flats,” she said. “That is how to be an adult woman at a concert, I think. You know how to feel good on your own two feet.”

The Look:

I Wanna Be Kate by Ben Folds

“She really mixed it up, because of course she had a wonderful relationship with so many designers”

For those still determined to live out their Kate Moss-at-Glastonbury moment, an interesting thing to note: When Moss was wearing her teeny golden tunic and Wellington boots in 2005, the famous dress was a hand-me-down from longtime friend and classic rock muse Anita Pallenberg. “She really mixed it up, because of course she had a wonderful relationship with so many designers like Yves Saint Laurent and Burberry,” says Pallenberg’s son, Marlon Richards, whose father is Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones. “But she would also drag me down to Canal Street to go shopping and come back with, like, $5 sunglasses that she thought were amazing!” Richards recommends using a similar high-low strategy as his mother at concerts and festivals, though not for aesthetics alone: A great music show is basically the ultimate party, and if you’re dancing with wild abandon, a stack of bangle bracelets, a barrette, or a scarf can easily tumble into the crowd. That’s a small offering for the rock gods if it’s a plastic bauble from H&M—but a far different type of sacrifice if the lost pair of shades come from Gucci instead of CVS. Be a grown-up: Leave the $600 sunglasses at home.

Read GRAZIA USA’s Summer Issue featuring cover star Sienna Miller: