01 — Arrive overdressed
The room should wonder whether you’re lost or in charge. Hint: both can be true after midnight.
Richard Shillington presents
Jet-set field notes from the wrong side of the velvet rope. Glorious bad decisions, documented with style — and a pocketful of Disco Bananas for emergencies.
The Myth
The room should wonder whether you’re lost or in charge. Hint: both can be true after midnight.
If finance asks, it was “cultural research.” If culture asks, it was finance. Either way: bring receipts of the photographic kind.
Preferable order. If reversed, double the tip and learn the bartender’s name. Degeneracy without grace is just noise.
Mystique is a checkout time. The International Man of Degeneracy exits while the band still thinks he’s somebody.
“Groovy. Dangerous. Frequently Incorrect.” — the operating system. Sidearm optional. Disco Bananas preferred.
The Arsenal
Standard-issue charm is never enough. When the velvet rope turns hostile, reach for glittery gold — Austin Powers–style spy gadgets, remixed original, zero crude.
Glitter. Gold. Velvet-rope chaos.
The International Man of Degeneracy’s main gadget: a pair of champagne-gold bananas dusted in hot-pink sparkle. Deploy for defense (distract the bouncer), distraction (mirror-ball misdirection), or pure velvet-rope diplomacy. License to Misbehave — ammunition optional, groove mandatory.
A smile calibrated to open doors and close tabs. Non-lethal. Highly addictive to maître d’s.
Soft armor for afterhours. Survives neon, fog, and regrettable brunch negotiations.
Folded neatly in the breast pocket: “cultural research.” Deploy when finance calls.
World Tour
Six cities. Zero good judgment. Maximum velvet.
Fog, Savile Row, and a private club that definitely didn’t put you on the list — until you smiled like you owned the decade.
Neon as a love language. The house always wins; you just look better losing at 4 a.m. in a gold-button blazer.
Precision nightlife. You order the wrong thing with perfect manners and somehow become a regular by sunrise.
Sunset sermons, white linen, and a boat you shouldn’t have chartered. The Mediterranean forgives; your calendar does not.
Heat, neon rivers, and street food that remakes your personality. Degeneracy here is humid and highly recommended.
Pastel crime scenes and rooftop negotiations. You toast the skyline like it owes you money. It might.
Field Dispatches
Irregular intelligence from airports, afterparties, and regrettable brunch decisions. Travel tips from the wrong side of the rope — witty, brief, and never HR-approved.
Merch
Gold monogram on deep purple. Looks expensive. Isn’t yet.
SoonPsychedelic swirls for necks that make bad decisions.
SoonThe circular IMOD seal. Lapel diplomacy.
SoonSignature weapon on soft cotton. Glitter optional; swagger included.
Soon