Isn’t it funny when a timely but unanticipated exposure to two seemingly unique things allows you a new perspective where you recognize just how similar they actually are? Well that is exactly what happened when I was introduced to Derriere, a fabulous new hotspot in Paris just before I purchased the brand spanking new 20th Anniversary The Stone Roses box set. The restaurant/private club is one of the hottest spots in Paris and the creation of Mourad Mazouz, the mastermind behind Sketch and Momo. It’s not that the design is the most beautiful or elegant, you might even say its “Euro Trashed”, but it’s offering up something that no one else has. This space is divided into individual rooms, taking on insanely unique vibes, each with their own identity, and styles combined so imperfectly that it feels like you’re stepping into your friends’ place. Now if your friends happened to be rock stars, they must be The Stone Roses!
Listen to “I Wanna Be Adored” by The Stone Roses:
The Stone Roses are the quintessential Eurotrash band, or at least that’s what my hipster friends say. With legendary guitar riffs, psychedelic bass funk, and indecipherable lyrics, it’s hard to describe them without breaking into “I Wanna Be Adored.” However, the Stone Roses really could care less if you loved them or hated them. This is the same idea behind Eurotrash, which is a style where you must appreciate the little details even if the little details are just wrong. When there’s something so endearing about a dingy dark little apartment in Manchester that has you wishing your own room looked just like it. With those splatter painted floors, ripped cushions, faded sofa, and mirrors so dirty you can barely see your reflection, you question for a second, but soon realize this look didn’t just happen by itself. You will soon find yourself lost in the details of each and every piece.
1. Flower of Love Wallpaper 2. Stag Chandelier 3. Belle Notte Curtain Panel 4. Eleanor Frameless Mirror 5. Community Drawers 6. Lee Broom Luminaire Bergere Side Chair 7. Pacifica Sofa 8. Paint Splattered Floor 9. Studio Morning Rug by Henzel 10. Gnome Side Table 11. Ping Pong Table 12. Paint Splatter on Ping Pong Table 13. Kartell LCP Chair
[Top photos: Australian Vogue Living ]

2 Comments
Jim on 11.05.2009 at 14:41 PM
Check out the concept of synchronicity. The Tao of Psychology by Jean Shinoda Bolen is very good…
Josef Minta on 11.06.2009 at 05:48 AM
I find the link you make between music and place really interesting especially as we often associate particular styles of music with a particular place and time. The Manchester that The Stone Roses came out of, gritty, urban and falling apart is definitely reflected in the type of music they then created. It had a spirit and drive that seemed to come straight out of the empty factories, along the rubbish strewn gutters and into our terraced houses as the music of the place and time. It is interesting how the music can be recontextalized when re-released and can be applied successfully to new places, new times. I would have issue with calling the Stone Roses Euro trash because to me (perhaps I am biased) they are quintessential Manchester: global but local, unique yet with global appeal. Derriere looks like many places we have in Manchester through necessity rather than design as it has always been a place where we take everything that we have around us and turn it into something better which we then share with the rest of the world, just like The Stone Roses. We are pretty humble about being the best city too! I would check out bars in Manchester like common, Odd and Trof as great examples of this.
Want your image to appear next to your comment? Get a gravatar!Leave A Comment