On show in the brutalist basement of the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, US designer’s new line toys with styles from the noughties.

For a designer who routinely dabbles with the coup de théâtre, Rick Owens’s new collection, shown in the brutalist concrete basement of the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, was unusually low on drama and high on the prosaic. The American designer has twisted the norms of menswear as opposed to deviating from them.

Since founding his label in Los Angeles 22 years ago, Owens has rarely strayed from his signature look – all complex angles, leather and lots of black.

Thursday’s show was big on those same trademark silhouettes, which were comically bulbous, especially on the outerwear. A cream drawstring mohair sleeveless coat was pompous, cloud-like; a giant padded coat, again sleeveless, resembled a sleeping bag.

It was otherwise a staid and accessible collection, more focused on toying with obvious styles from the noughties. Hoodies were hoodies, except full-length and waterfalling down the front. Combats reminiscent of Maharishi’s much-maligned 00s trousers were skater-friendly, except comically wide and lined with giant pockets. Knee-length wool coats were nicely tailored but painted down one arm. It was mainly remarkable for its wearability. Guests visibly strained to find something weird attached to a brown trench but it was just that: a nice brown coat.

A model wears a creation by Rick Owens
A model wears a creation by Rick Owens. Photograph: Patrick Kovarik/AFP/Getty Images
For his previous autumn/winter collection, the designer sent four models down the catwalk wearing monkish clothes with holes that exposed their penises. For his current season womenswear show, he yoked models together to form human backpacks. The same season in menswear, one model went rogue, mocking up a homemade sign which read: “Please kill Angela Merkel – not.”

Owing to his monochromatic, goth-inspired collections, Owens is often referred to as the Prince of Darkness. Hence the doom techno soundtrack on Thursday. Again, it suggested the designer is returning to brand Owens.

He stuck to his go-to monochrome palate with only the odd flourish of burnt orange, which, on models with shaved heads and eyebrows, drew whispered comparisons to Tibetan monks. As to whether a religious message was in force, it was hard to tell.

There is usually commentary method in his madness (the infamous penis show highlighted male objectification, the backpacks were about “women supporting women”). And while there were few allusions to gender this time, with the collection big on alpha minimalism, the story felt less contrived and more about returning to Owens’s house style.

The mood in Parisian menswear at the current shows, which end on Sunday, has so far been low on drama save some controversial Navajo embellishments at Valentino and knitted cycling shorts at Issey Miyake earlier in the day.

The bizarre white Kabuki face paint curdled the seriousness slightly, with models resembling reverse Papa Lazarou from the League of Gentlemen. But otherwise Rick Owens appeared to be appreciating an eastern influence as opposed to appropriating it.