Summary

Pair of synthetic underpants with multi-coloured designs of popular 70s Glam Rock band, Kiss. They were given to teenager Brett McCabe by his brother Andrew in the mid-1970s. The brothers liked Kiss' music, but the gift was tongue-in-cheek. The brothers grew up in Boyd Street, Dandenong, in Melbourne's outer south-east.

Physical Description

Bikini-style men's synthetic underpants with multi-coloured designs of popular 70s Glam Rock band, Kiss. Cartoon caricatures of the faces of band members with geometric shapes and lines in the background. Black border around each edge.

Significance

Clothing representing youth cultures and sub-cultures is still relatively rare in Australian museums. The three items in this collection - two pairs of treads and a pair of pop branded underpants - are of additional significance since they are provenanced to a particular family and location, in the outer south-east Melbourne suburb of Dandenong. They were used by two brothers born in the early 1960s, Andrew and Brett McCabe, the only children of English immigrant blacksmith Francis McCabe (in Australia working as a panel beater) and his wife Clare Mavis, who had been a professional housekeeper to the Malvern family of Colonel Joseph Rex Hall. The family lived in Boyd Street, Dandenong, throughout the boys' childhood. They attended Greenslopes Primary School and Lyndale High School. The boys' interests reflected contemporary popular culture, particularly in relation to music to clothing. Both became musicians in bands after completing trade apprenticeships. Photographs are available to complement the collection.

The treads, with their open weave, were typically worn by 'surfies' and youth who spent time at the beach. At least some treads were probably made locally. The underpants - branded with iconography the popular band Kiss - illustrate the marketing of international bands in the 1970s, and some of the merchandise that complemented vinyl albums and posters.

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