The Global Scenester - the end of individuality?

"There always used to be a particular city that was the centre of cool at a particular point in time. But now there's no longer a place where it's 'at'; there's no longer any centre of the world's popular cultural universe. For a time it seemed it would be a simple matter of shifting from London to Tokyo. But instead, street style is everywhere and in places you'd never have guessed it would be."

Ted Polhemus, style anthropologist and author of Streetstyle: From Sidewalk to Catwalk.

The Internet is full of interesting articles but sometimes there's just too much to find. Unfortunately I've not got the scan reading ability of Raymond (Dustin Hoffman's character in Rainman) or Susie for that matter but no matter I don't have to do it on my own, I do get the odd interesting article forwarded to me (that's an open invitation for you to do it as well, thank you very much). Our good friend Daniel Jenkins sent us Meet the global scenester which was featured in The Independent, which examines the seemingly decline of individuality or at least the 'spread of cool' as guys from across the globe (from Helsinki to Hull) buy into the same brands and lifestyle.

America Apparel's shades for Autumn will no doubt be worn in a city near you and far from you

So which brand's supply this new global order? Uniqlo is certainly one example. Uniqlo has something close to 800 stores worldwide, including outlets in the UK (a ridiculous number on just Oxford Street), US and France. Kashiwa Sato (the chap who turned the outlet from a perceived chap and nasty brand, into how we see it today) wanted "the ultra-contemporary cool aspect of Japan, its pop culture rather than something traditional and Japanese-y." He'd tapped into the global scene. For some reason I decided to brave the crowds of Oxford Street and ventured inside one of the many stores there, it was packed with men buying all kinds of basics (I left with a purple merino wool sweater and a pair of skinny jeans). Uniqlo is great, however, there is a much better example of a brand supplying this 'global scenster', American Apparel. The further the brand casts it's global net (which is damn far, as I type this they've probably opened at least one more store), the more easily the company can study and copy street style, which it then repackages and sells it back to the originators of that style and the masses alike.

Nathan Barley - a product of Brooker and Morris’ warped and wonderful imagination. It might be old but it's not dated. A hilarious look at the life of a scenester. Rather than being confined to areas like Hoxton has Nathan Barley spread, have you seen him in Helsinki and Hull alike?

A few years back now there was a comedy which highlights a number of the points within the article. Nathan Barley. Nathan Barley is 26. He is a webmaster, guerrilla filmmaker, screenwriter, DJ and in his own words, a "self-facilitating media node". He is convinced he is the epitome of urban cool and therefore secretly terrified he might not be, which is why he reads Sugar Ape Magazine - his bible of cool - which strikes a canny resemblance to Vice. EJ recently forced Thom Wong to watch and now he's a fan; the man, has great and so do we, so if you've not watched it go and do so now.

The rise and rise of the internet has been a key factor in the globalisation of hip. The world is certainly a smaller place with the internet (Nathan Barley himself ran a website – or "urban culture dispatch" – called Trashbat.co.ck). Through mailouts and blogs, the tropes of eclectic style tribes the world over are quickly integrated into a single street style aesthetic. The widespread "borrowing and referencing" takes place not just in capitals of cool like London but on an international scale, via the Internet, the result is that the same brand of individuality (or something highly similar) is sold, worn and celebrated the world over. As I've followed Facehunter's search for eye candy I've become tired of similar ensembles the world over. Is it just his photography style that is somewhat tiresome or is there an element of truth to the above article? Has the world indeed become a much smaller place? Where previously there was a set look representative of a city, has cultural globalisation evolved this into a look representing a global scene?

As it's the weekend, let's play a game. It's simple, all you have to do is match the Facehunter's street style shots above with their respective city of origin. Go clockwise from the top left and select the city you think is represented in the shot.

Options:

a) London
b) New York
c) Copenhagen

d) Stockholm
e) Helsinki

f) Berlin

Please note that there might just be two images from the same city. You decide. No cheating please. Answers on a postcard to PO Box Stylesalvage...alternatively please comment.