Japanese urban tribes II: The Visual Kei

Continuing with our tour of Japanese-influenced youth groups, we now come to the Visual Kei. Let's take a look at this feminine-oriented group of young men.

Visual Kei in Chiile: if it isn’t female (or feminine), it’s not Visual

Chile’s plazas, malls and McDonald's are increasingly populated by young people who are, at first glance, hard to recognize as male. They wear fancy clothes and makeup. These are called Visual Kei, in their chilensis subdivision of Japanese-styled groups. Visual is a style that is growing in popularity. It will probably become an important part of the vast national urban tribe scene. But why are they dressed and made up as they are? To explain this, we have to go back to the late 1980s, when the major Japanese cities began to see this style burgeon. It is characterized by the cult of aesthetics (concerns with appearances, combined with “kei” which means style in Japanese). Its maximum expression was the glam group Visual Scandals. Later, many groups adapted this 1980s look and millions of young people who made Visual Kei a way of life.

As in Japan, Chilean Visual Kei seek to stand out from their peers via makeup, hair and extravagant costumes. They also seek to look as feminine as possible, be they male or female Visuals. A Visual, therefore, cannot only employ the age-old running mascara routine. They use curved eyelashes, shave their eyebrows, a foundation (of make up) and dyed hair. If you do not meet these basic requirements, you are not Visual. And if your wardrobe is not feminine, you are not visual either. You need to add pig tails to your tight T-shirts and jeans. All of the aforementioned is accompanied by music… J-Rock and Japanese rock.

Like the rest of the Japanese tribes in Chile, the Visual Kei have a wide range of subsets. The most common in Chile Oshare Kei, with colorful clothes, stuffed animals and a consistently happy attitude. This is unlike the rest of the subdivisions. Eroguro Kei, for instance, use grotesque makeup and erotic costumes which are usually torn.

Currently, Visual Kei are organized in large part via Internet. They have even created a group on the popular music sharing network last.fm. Event organizers have not missed out, either. Big profits have been made by holding Visual Kei parties, given the limited supply and huge demand. Apparently, Visual Kei is one of the fastest-spreading urban tribes in Chile... a fashion statement that apparently here to stay.