Alternative music = alternative fashion?

I've been really getting into 90's grunge at the moment. I've always been more partial to rock music but never really consciously expressed my music taste through my fashion choices, apart from a phase I went through where I wouldn't take off my 'Muse' T-shirt because I thought I was so hardcore. I suppose I wear an awful lot of black which people used to associate with being a 'goth'. I've definitely always been interested in the darker side of things. But rock music's not all about doom and gloom.

A fashion icon like Courtney Love, for example, went through her whole babydoll dresses, messed-up hair and big boots look for a while which really caught on because it was different to the stereotypical rock chick look of studs and leather. Someone like Shirley Manson is a huge fan of stripes (aren't most rock chicks?) and her ankle boots.

Even presenters or 'it-girls' have adopted similar styles to try and show their inclination for the alternative music scene. Take Alexa Chung... fashion sweetheart. Most of her looks are a fabulous mix of quirky naughty schoolgirl items and oversized grungy knits. The fact she's dating the singer of Arctic Monkeys only adds to the cool factor and has cemented her and her fashion sense as inherently 'cool'. Just take a look at Kate Moss and the millions of girls who view her as a style icon. I would probably describe her look as definitely rock-inspired with elements of boho thrown in the mix. It definitely works and stores like Topshop have become absolute giants on the High Street by capitalising on the 'cool' factor, adopting this rock and roll edge to their fashion. Let's just say, I can't walk around London without seeing this inspired look, from the studs to the leather trousers.

This, however, does not work when people who do not have any knowledge of the alternative scene think that by dressing a certain way and wearing a 'Bob Marley' T-shirt, they can automatically become stylish. It's not very difficult to point out the people who are doing it completely for the image and to me, there's nothing more cringeworthy than that.