Of all the musical gods who have transcended their initial expertise and crossed into the halls of fashion stardom, I strongly feel Rick Nielsen and his otherworldly contributions fail to get the necessary acknowledgment. The Cheap Trick guitarist’s lack of Bowie’s genderfluid spacesuit, Hendrix’s exaggerated lace and Cobain’s mohair cardigans immediately dispel him from the pointless conversation of “best dressed musician”, but the man’s wardrobe reached icon status without a doubt. The upturned cycling cap, detailed knitwear and checkerboard obsession will never be mistaken for anyone besides Nielsen, but my interest peaked for reasons outside his most popular possessions. I’m not sure what spurned my Cheap Trick Google image search, but I vividly remember the glittering footwear on Nielsen that made me freeze mid-scroll and eek out a disbelieving “No fucking way.” The man had multicolor HTM Air Wovens. A shoe completely irrelevant to some and far from a rockstar’s typical arsenal of snakeskin boots and scuffed Converse, but they’re an undeniable monument of early 2000s sneaker fandom and a huge personal favorite. Celebrity shoe choices are rarely shocking as people with unlimited money and access can essentially obtain piece desired. But, Nielsen didn’t choose a rare, hype-tinged sneaker, designer loafers or any type of remotely popular silhouette. A shoe like the Air Woven signals an informed decision; it doesn’t just happen into a wardrobe. Enthralled by the interesting choice, I dived deeper into Google’s pages and was continually met with snapshots of Nielsen performing with a five-neck guitar and strutting down the red carpet in an absurdly cool variety of Air Wovens and similarly offbeat Nike models. (Bonus points for the checkered Sock Racers, I had no clue those existed.) His fashion sense is well documented, and I grew comfortably accustomed to the checked sweater and cycling cap combo. But unbeknownst to me, his style progressed past Cheap Trick’s heyday. Although his high-top, black Asics are a historic finish to his onstage outfits, his preference seemingly switched to “weird” Nike models during the early to mid-2000s. Once again, fantastic shoes but far from an obvious choice. Nielsen is clearly a fashionable guy, and I’m not attempting to discredit his ability to pick a good pair – the man has several iconic looks attached to his name – but I’m interested in how his fondness developed. Nielsen may have simply just seen the shoes, liked them and purchased. But, that ‘s a bit boring, and I can’t help but imagine a bigger, more entertaining story behind his affinity. Japan loved Cheap Trick, and the band saw immense success in the country. The Japanese also adore the Air Woven with countless special releases and colorways blessing the country (The model itself was a Japan exclusive for a period of time.) I don’t think it’s too much of an unfounded leap for Nielsen to have seen the shoes during an overseas stay and grew attached. I hope there’s some shreds of truth in my hypothetical Japanese love story, but after discovering an an article discussing Nielsen’s style, I stumbled on to some possible evidence for his sartorial decision. According to Cheap Trick’s photographer and Nielsen’s childhood friend, his obsession for monochrome checkerboard print objects stems back from watching static dance across a television. The man is absolutely enthralled with the pattern – it even covers his John Deere tractor. Bizarre. In a rather anticlimactic fashion, I realized a blatantly obvious fact. Most Air Woven colorways form a checked print. Nielsen’s footwear nepotism may be driven less by historic Japanese tours and more on a continued fixation for clothing with alternating color blocks. (Sneaker Freaker highlighted a Steven Smith-designed Footscape 2 made especially for Nielsen– utilizing black and white checks of course.) Thankfully he chose Air Wovens over Vans’ infamous checked Slip-Ons favored by eight graders and 35-year-old men with gauges.
Even if the Japan connection is a far-flung, self-serving conspiracy theory, he still radiate cool, and I view his choices as the ultimate in zany celebrity sneaker collecting. Nielsen’s unwavering checkerboard allegiance resulted in him wearing one of the coolest, historically important shoes. For a 70-year-old rockstar, I’m thoroughly impressed. Although he doesn’t break out his signature ensembles anymore, the shoes remain a subtle little nod to some of music’s best outfits.
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Every season sneakers are allegedly dying, dead or far from the ‘’it” footwear item. The never-ending barrage of retros, collaborations, and trendy releases can lead to many seeking alternatives from anything with laces or hints of athletic prowess. Despite the morbid claims, I don’t think athletic trainers are going to lose any popularity as the world’s dress code continues to drop, but I’ve been fervently searching substitutes for my standard loafers, sandals and sneakers repertoire. I wasn’t quite sure how my Shrangi-La would materialize, but I wanted no trace of any typical footwear products. Safe bets were not what I was looking for. The idea of some type of mule or clog intrigued me as the silhouette becomes increasingly accepted as male-appropriate. Society’s green light doesn’t means much, but it’s encouraging to see popular brands readily producing similar items for men. Personally, comfortable footwear reigns undefeated and backless footwear stands as a qualified candidate worthy to pursue. With a basic blueprint swirling through my conscience, I was on 24/7 high alert for the loosely-defined yet sought-after item I knew I needed but failed to pinpoint. My desperate dream started to fade into frustrated lust as another pair of retro trainers tempted me from my path to footwear enlightenment, but a saving grace appeared on the runway during London Fashion Week. Along with translucent serial killer masks, paisley suiting and another Converse rendition, Paria Farzaneh’s SS20 show included the item I was unknowingly hoping to find. The glorious reward for my suffering – cowhide clogs. I never imagined the spotted combination would intrigue me to such a high degree, but I couldn’t shake the feeling and the immediate need to purchase. Despite the relief of finally locating my footwear solution, the victory lap abruptly ended. When I see appealing items skip down the catwalk, I’m automatically assuming the inevitable obliteration of my bank account. My emotional investment in the animal skin beasts was high, but after some rationalization I figured the clogs might be an unfair tease and my doomed odyssey would continue. My worst fear was the item potentially being a preview of an upcoming collaboration or some in-house creation with a price point serving as an insurmountable obstacle blocking my purchase. It’s a common, difficult-to-accept situation, but I was shown salvation then immediately forced to look away. However, I refused to continue onward without indisputable, soul-crushing evidence the shoes were 100 percent out of my league. After some online digging I was found the culprit responsible for the furry creations and landed on the website of a traditional Austrian shoemaking company with production dating back to the 1920s. Checkpoint reached. Much to my delight, the shoes weren’t a result of some avant-garde partnership or designer fever dream, – they cost about $170 – they’re handcrafted by Woody, a small, playful operation with a serious product lineup. Although there’s a variety of colors, models and textures, the company’s clear, unrivaled focus is wood-sole clogs. Despite the dizzying array of options attempting to lure me away, my eyes were locked onto the cowhide makeup featured in Farzaneh’s show. My holy grail was revealed to be a furry, backless clog perched upon a thick wooden sole – exactly what I hoped for. You would think with Woody’s high fashion cosign, European heritage, admirable craftsmanship, approachable pricing and trend-friendly colors, the company would have accumulated a decent sized global following in its 97 year history. But, I was pleasantly shocked to see less than 4,000 people follow the brand’s Instagram, and I can’t find any mention of it on the usual blogs or websites. Woody doesn’t produce the most conventional items, but to escape fashion’s vast-reaching grip in the 21stcentury is an unheard of accomplishment. The lack of recognition caused me to ask myself, are they that weird? Not a chance, that rule doesn’t exist in footwear currently. Perhaps a bit too hairy? Unlikely, deep-pile fleeces and wispy mohair sweaters are running wild on the internet. I don’t think either of the previous rationale are necessarily true, but besides the lack of empathy for PETA supporters, an underground Austrian footwear company won’t stay unknown forever in today’s clog-friendly environment. Besides the Mogwai-like hide Woody utilizes, the standard clog silhouette is eerily similar to other options soaring in the menswear dimension. It’s essentially a Birkenstock Boston with a beefed up sole and bigger, pilgrim-hat style buckle. Although on the opposite end of the materials spectrum, Crocs share various strands of DNA with Woody’s creations, and the brightly-colored clogs are still a popular fashion plaything, ironic or not.
Regardless of potential comparisons, an eyebrow will be raised when Woody’s Lukas Fell – fell is German for fur – are worn. At first glace an onlooker may assume the shoes belong to some European shepherd guiding his flock across some oft-forgotten mountain trail or an overly eclectic art dealer doing his best to move some B-grade impressionist works. With a shoe like this, imaginations can run wild when devising logical backstories. (After racking my brain, I can’t think of anything excessively creative for a twenty something in Yeezys.) It was a weird, drifting journey, but I landed directly on the bullseye I wasn’t sure existed. I don’t know what my excitement says about my current footwear interests, but a pair of spotted, comically furry, wood-sole clogs brought me refuge from the influx of trainers infiltrating my timeline. Athletic shoes certainly aren’t fading away, but a world where people wear shoes like Woody’s seems a lot more fun. |
AuthorMax Theriot Archives
November 2019
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