Poseur

The shopping district of Melrose Avenue became known as an underground rock and artist district throughout the '80s, marked by stores such as Poseur, Vinyl Fetish, Soap Plant and Flip. If you were in Los Angeles in the 80's and in the Punk or 'Death' scene, then likely you shopped on this section of Melrose Ave. and at Poseur. Poseur (proprietors Jim and Pam) was always on the list when we went for a hang out and shop day on Melrose. Harringtons in Red or Black, Bondage Trousers, T Shirts, pins, patches, D.M's, Braces and Music!







Poseur (or "poser") is a pejorative term, often used in the musical subcultures of punk, heavy metal, hip-hop, and goth to describe "a person who habitually pretends to be something he is not. The term is used to refer to a person who adopts the dress, speech, and/or mannerisms of a group or subculture, generally for attaining acceptability within the group, yet who is deemed to not share or understand the values or philosophy of the subculture. While this perceived inauthenticity is viewed with scorn and contempt by members of the subculture, the definition of the term and to whom it should be applied is subjective and the subject of much debate. For example, the Television Personalities' 1978 song “Part-Time Punks,” "...declared that either everyone who wanted to be a punk was one or that everyone was a poseur (or both)" and it argues that "the concept of...punk rock authenticity...was a fiction."