When cult-fave menswear label, Number (N)ine, closed up shop without warning in the fall of last year, devotees mourned the loss of visionary designer Takahiro Miyashita, whose kooky, avant garde apparel was tough to find anywhere else. Happily, Miyashita has returned to fashion with a quieter and more adult aesthetic, with his new brand, "The Soloist."
Unlike (N)ine, which often took inspiration from edgy musicians and classic rock n' roll fashion, the more accessible "Soloist" offers unisex apparel in simple cuts and colors—that is, simple by comparison. For the brand's debut collection, "Symphony 0001," Miyashita explored couture construction techniques (one jacket took five different sewing machines to make) and "trompe l'oeil" detailing—one seemingly simple shirt, for example, comes with multiple vest overlays, all removable via hand-sewn snap closures.
Takahiro told Style.com he plans to refresh and reinvent a core of basic styles season after season, tweaking them twelve times a year rather than following the typical Fall/Spring fashion calendar. We always love finding the rare "constants" in the fashion universe, and look forward to watching Soloist evolve over the course of this year.
