When you think of Camden, two things spring to mind. Punks and piercings. Throughout the ’70s and ’80s, the borough became home to some of this century’s most iconic subcultures, shaping London’s underground scene and communities of individuals identifying publicly with each other through a shared affinity for going against the grain and self-expression through piercings.
Right in the middle of this rebellious era was Metal Morphosis‘ Founder Matthew Harris, stocking his market stall with wigs, bog roll, bling and just about anything he could get his hands on. Fast forward to the ’90s when the concept of piercings was slowly being adopted by more mainstream aesthetics, customers began asking Matthew to pierce them using the jewellery they’d purchased, so in came his pharmacist father to assist with the medical side of things and with that, one of London’s oldest piercings shops was born.
By 1991, the duo opened their first store in Old Compton Street, doing everything from nipples to nose rings. Further normalising the concept of piercings and creating space for subcultures to expand into an accepting space, Metal Morphosis took their business on the road, embellishing music fans at some of the UK’s most culturally significant festivals from good old Glastonbury to the chaotic yet loveable Leeds.
Today, you can find their store smack bang in the middle of Carnaby Street (or if you’d like a taste of their underground roots, head to the slightly more brutalist setting in Hackney), piercing everyone from Charity Case to Amy Valentine in a society where piercing is no longer abstract, it’s celebrated (bar the opinions of a few stuffy middle-aged boomers), a brick and mortar reminder of the communities who lead the movement and Metal Morphosis’ part in normalising the art of piercing in today’s society.