Recently, I spoke a little about 1995-1996, Clueless, two pop albums, a loud, Californian sensibility. And since that investigation of middle school and Gwen Stefani's clothes, I remembered to note Fiona Apple's "Criminal" video of the same/following year. Apple played some role in the female singer-songwriter/damaged lesbian(ish) thing that happened and happened and happened into the late nineties. But, visually speaking, at least in this very popular (relatively iconic) video, Apple was miles chicer than the Lillith crew. The seventies redux, acrid carpets and Jurgen Teller lighting schemes and wood-paneling and dark denim, is supreme and part of a wave that wouldn't crest until the new millennium (with Jurgen Teller [and Ryan McGinley] and Marc Jacobs and all "hipster-dom" and American Apparel). Watch and see, kind of visionary.
