within earshot

The newly remixed version of Iggy Pop's Raw Power blasts through my headphones and it feels like 1973 all over again.

OK, so I was only a 6-year-old in '73. But floating back in time is something we '90s folks love to do.

Some people call it the fin-de-siecle phenomenon (that means the end of a century in French) when the previous decades come crashing into a stylistic convergence. Webster's Dictionary calls it "...a climate of sophistication, world-weariness and fashionable despair."

The same could be said for this close of the 20th century: been there, done that. We've seen the BEST - Chanel suits, Prada shoes, Schiaparelli hats. We've seen the WORST - leg warmers and Loverboy headbands.

In the '90s, everything gets rehashed: feathered, art-deco-era jackets mix with pedal-pusher pants, platform sandals and shag haircuts.

And it's not just clothes. We've got nifty restaurants dedicated to '50s cocktail parties and hippie hoedowns dedicated to the spirit of the '60s.

But it's the '70s craze that is particularly stunning - an ongoing revisit (that's lasted for a good five years now) to the polyestered, earth-toned, wide-collared, bell-bottomed culture. It's the most cartoonish clothing that fashion ever spawned. Perhaps because these items are so over-the-top garish they've turned appealing. And everyone from the Gap to Anna Sui offers variations on the '70s theme.

Don't forget the music. The Partridge Family, Bee Gees, Village People, Fleetwood Mac, Parliament/Funkadelic, Earth Wind and Fire. Some classic rocker's greatest moments were in the '70s - at least for the Stones, David Bowie and Bruce Springsteen.

But you know all that if you've watched hours and hours of Seven More Days of the '70s on VH-1: American Bandstand 1977, a KC and the Sunshine Band concert and the Very Jeffersons Reunion Show. Perfect while chowing down on a delicious fluffernutter sandwich.

I know, I have a serious problem.

I'm not the only one lost in the '70s. Neil Gladstone writes in "Manstyle" this month about the lure of becoming a Shaft-like Mack Daddy. Local band The Delta 72, a group influenced by the early Rolling Stones (sartorially and sonically) uncover a variety of '60s and '70s nuggets at local vintage stores - fake fur coats, a mint condition Best of '72 album and bug-eyed sunglasses. On the "Wish List" style page this month, we point out three trendy bits that'll turn you into a Donna Summer diva.

The mirror ball hasn't stopped turning yet in Philly. Along with the disco-themed Shampoo in Northern Liberties, new chain-nightclub Polly Esther's is on the way with its Saturday Night Fever flavor.

The club, to open late April at 12th and Race Streets, will feature drinks like The Brady Punch and Afro Disiac and a shrine to David Cassidy.

Where will it all end?!

Don't worry, we hear that tightly permed hair, rubber bracelets, cut-up sweatshirts and Fiorucci-style clear backpacks of the '80s are just around the corner.

"So what will people remember about the '90s?" asked Jennifer Darr, earSHOT's resident vintage gal. "What will people remember about this decade?"

We made a short list:

• T-shirts that say, a la Bart Simpson, "Don't Have A Cow Man"
• The modified Caesar haircut as sported by Friends stars and George Clooney
• The Friends "Rachel" haircut (which is really a modified '70s shag)
• Oakley wrap-around sunglasses
• Colored beeper cases
• Cell phones
• Gulf War memorabilia (it's already started with two characters cast as Gulf War vets on Melrose Place)
• The grungy flannel-goatee look (does not count when items are worn separately)
• Smart Drinks
• Sneakers that look like "black and white gummy bears, with big clear heels," said Jen. "Pretty soon they're gonna have goldfish in the bottom."

- Margit Detweiler, Editor