Johnny Hunter
I don’t remember the first time I met Johnny Hunter but I remember the first time I experienced Johnny Hunter. It was September 2019 at the Marlborough hotel and I’d met frontman Nick Hutt only a few times at that point. He seemed like a pretty mellow dude if you ignored the untamed bleached mullet and medusa head Versace sunglasses. I didn’t really know anything about Johnny Hunter (blame that on being out of the country for a long time) and didn’t really know what to expect of them live.
Nick dramatically emerged onto the stage like a Hellenistic Greek statue. He moved silently and slowly as he stared down the crowd intensely and raised a fist. The densely packed dancefloor turned into a hectic mosh pit as everyone preceded to lose their shit, belting out every chorus under the command of their flamboyant leader.
The enigmatic stage presence is led by Nick who takes on the character of Johnny Hunter for his live performances as a way of exploring his boundaries and in his words “become someone far greater than I could ever be”.
Johnny Hunter live at the Lansdowne, November 2020
Johnny Hunter have described their musical approach as a dark one, inspired by events in ancient history and gothic literature with style references from David Bowie and Kate Bush. Fashion is a critical tool utilised in the showmanship and creative exploration for Nick. For a long time, the Johnny Hunter uniform has been monochromatic, defined by black suits, white collared shirts and an unforgiving amount of eyeshadow and red lipstick.
When we began speaking to Nick about making a suit for his live shows we were surprised when he said that he wanted something colourful and bold.
The fabric Nick chose for his suit is a beautiful green and orange check with a bright orange lining, something that not everyone would be able to pull off. For the style of the suit we went with a single-breasted piece with peak lapels, gold buttons and flared pants. A tailor-made UN bamboo shirt with a balloon sleeve and pointed collar would accompany the suit.
The bright suit represents a turning point for Johnny Hunter as they work on their debut album set to release in 2021 with a musical side that has never been seen before. As Nick put it, “the time for wearing black suits is well and truly over”.
