Those sporting looks from the Browne oeuvre and taking in the scene included Junia Lin, Isan Elba, Jack Cameron Kay, Ian Bradley, and Tom Sachs—new headphones included. Produced in partnership with Bose, the Quietcomfort Ultra headphones are no run of the mill audio accessory. The exterior is adorned with the brand’s four-bar white stripes and a signature red, white, and blue grosgrain loop, while the headphone cushions and zip case are rendered in Browne-approved grey cashmere. After all, lest we forget, the avid runner is known to race through Central Park in his cashmere cardigan and shorts.
The gadget first debuted during the pre-Super Bowl runway show earlier this year, presented in collaboration with GQ, so it’s no surprise to see them on the ears of the many athletes who already know and love Browne’s modus operandi. Among them, New York Knicks shooting guard Jordan Clarkson. “I always listen to music before a game to set the tone,” Clarkson said. “I listen to a lot of Future and Frank Sinatra: ‘My Way,’ ‘Fly Me to the Moon,’ ‘New York, New York.’ Usually right before I go on the court is when I listen to Frank Sinatra, like I’m performing.”
This isn’t Thom Browne’s first foray into the world of tech. There was the innovative foldable Samsung mobile phone launched in 2020, now a coveted relic of collaborations past. “Thom is always a few steps ahead,” mused one loyal staffer. “He may seem set in his ways, but I think sometimes we forget he’s looking toward the future too.” Unlike the foldable phone, we predict these headphones—yours for $950—may have more staying power.
Also strikingly forward-thinking given the surroundings—chandeliers, parquet floors, coffered ceilings—was the choice to end the evening with a performance by Danish punk rock group, Iceage. Outfitted in Thom Browne suits, the band certainly didn’t hold back, shaking the room with their hits and testing the seams of their suits with their moves. Downstairs, real club members had mostly cleared out of the dining room as the walls reverberated and the clash of the drums and cymbals came down through the atrium, leaving the kids to have free rein and continue partying into the night, much to the chagrin of the venue’s doorman.
It is this sort of subtle subversion that has made the designer such a powerful, lasting force in American fashion; one capable of lending his signature detailing to just about anything. All without a logo, there’s the instant feeling that this thing, whatever it may be, was born from the unique mind of Browne.
Some 20 years later, it’s the same approach that was captured by Tim Blanks in his review of the inaugural Thom Browne show, that 2005 battle of the bands at Bergdorf Goodman. Referring to a three-piece suit in the palest lemon brocade, he told readers: “Odd–but so confident and luxurious that it became an object of desire.” Now we can add cashmere headphones to that list.
