Streetwear Grading System: Red Tops

M o n d a y , M a r c h 1 6 , 2 0 0 9

Every streetwear brand tells a story, some talk about the gritty life of New York streets, others tell the story of southern California's skate culture, but rarely (ok, not so rarely) do streetwear brands get so caught up in making marginally humorous flips of logos that their purpose is telling the story of mind-numbing logo flips.

Enter Red Tops.




If I see this in a shop (right...) and the screen print looks like this, they should give you some kind of award. I don't know if they give awards for streetwear (I certainly wouldn't--I guess if they did they'd have to hand them out to every brand, like the remedial classes in high school), but DAMN even I would LOVE to wear photo clear images on my shirt! Who cares if they're totally irrelevant to 99.9% of people out there.

Lack of creativity: 8
Gaudiness: 8
Cost effectiveness: 6
Reappropriation: 6
Overall streetwear scale grade: 7/10




Woah, now this is what streetwear is all about! Don't you feel it coursing through your veins right now? Ya know, the rush of adrenaline that you're only able to feel if you have both a misguided sense of thuggery and a serene willingness to attach said thuggery to your paypal account balance?

Lack of creativity: 9
Gaudiness: 8
Cost effectiveness: 8
Reappropriation: 10
Overall streetwear scale grade: 8.75/10




The one thing I gotta say about Red Tops is they really take me back to streetwear's heyday of '06, where anybody would buy ANYTHING (not to be confused with aNYthing). Yep, rest in piss police, fake thugs, street art (that's kinda weird...but hey), swagger jackers (I hate those TOO!), snitches, wack brands, whea--wack brands? YOU HATE WACK BRANDS?!? SELF LOATHING WILL NOT GET YOU BOUTIQUE ACCOUNTS IN '09! Try Hot Topic...

Lack of creativity: 8.5
Gaudiness: 7
Cost effectiveness: 9
Reappropriation: 8.5
Overall streetwear scale grade: 8.25/10






Yeah, I know what you're thinking: Western Promises might be it, it's got everything you could want in a tee. Reckless reappropriation of logos? Check. Cost effective? At two colors, it's about as effective as it can get. Lack of creativity? Yup. Gaudy? Yeah. I can't even make a joke. It's like we're playing basketball and I'm a freshman and Red Tops is a 12th grader, but they're 12th grade Kobe Bryant and I'm ninth grade Sean Marks. This sucks.

Lack of creativity: 9
Gaudiness: 8.5
Cost effectiveness: 9.5
Reappropriation: 10
Overall streetwear scale grade: 9.25/10

--Ira

Streetwear Grading System: Obama Tees

S a t u r d a y , S e p t e m b e r 2 0 , 2 0 0 8

Now that the dust has settled on the presidential election and Barack Obama's Vince Carter-like ascent over the Frederic Weis that is John McCain, we'd like to bring you back to earth from all that "hope" nonsense we've heard spewed about.

Enter Streetwear Grading System: Obama Edition.

Generally, We like to keep it to a one brand maximum, but just about every one of you streetwear brands out there are trying your hardest to bring him down with you.

'Old Man' by DISRPT

Ok, you've taken a recent movie poster and barely changed it, I thought that was pretty streetwear. But then I got thinking (via Google), John McCain's face is where Javier Bardems was...John McCain is a psychopathic killer willing to stop at nothing to hunt down Barack and eventually pound an air thing into his head?!? That's NOT streetwear. And that makes Obama the poor disenfranchised soul who stole money without thinking about the repercussions. Way to reinforce sterotypes DISRPT.

Lack of creativity:9
Gaudiness: 7
Cost effectiveness:7
Reappropriation: 9
Overall streetwear scale grade: 8.0/10

'Balling with Barack '08' by Akomplice

I know, I know at first you think pretty cool, it's Punahou's team but Baracks got an MS painted crown on! BUT WAIT! Kanye and Jigga just made the squad! Yes my friends, streetwears holy trinity has made their first appearance together on a tee!!! Sadly, Beanie Siegel will continue to swing JV this year...

Lack of creativity:9.5
Gaudiness:8
Cost effectiveness:9
Reappropriation: 9
Overall streetwear scale grade: 8.875/10

'Obama V. Machine' by Hoodman

This is call out to everyone of us out there. He can't do it alone, I know it really resonates when the president-elect is being blasted to death with a laser from the capitol. And look! His papers marked "Change" and "Hope" are falling to the ground. This is a catastrophe! I just noticed this is reappropriation of an X-men cover, way to equate african Americans with mutants Eddie Huang's "Hood Man".

Lack of creativity:8
Gaudiness:9
Cost effectiveness:8
Reappropriation: 9
Overall streetwear scale grade: 8.5/10

'Obama is McFly' by Sons of Liberty

This is streetwear. If you're one of the many Google searchers who find your way here by looking for porn (no Oregon Theater directions here SAD FACE), take only this away from your trip: this is what streetwear is about. Iconic movie. CHECK (double points for Back to the Future!). Barack Obama. CHECK. Gaudy wording. CHECK. Reappropriation. CHECK.

Lack of creativity:10
Gaudiness:9
Cost effectiveness:8
Reappropriation: 10
Overall streetwear scale grade: 9.25/10 (THE HIGHEST GRADE EVER ACHIEVED IN THE SGS! For that you get a link Sons of Liberty)

--Ira

Streetwear Grading System: Double Down NYC

S a t u r d a y , O c t o b e r 1 8 , 2 0 0 8

I don't know a whole lot about Double Down NYC (apparently Google doesn't know much either, or at least they're not telling anyone), but I can tell you two things about them: They make overpriced glasses and one damn good polo.

Actually, I can tell you a little bit more (like what they told me). I can tell you that they're "one of the original NY streetwear brands" (who Google hasn't heard much about...) and that they're "releasing a new collection this coming spring that brings back a lot of nostalgia for early 80's New York City."

'Eighty Fours Series Frames'

Ok, it's not that bad if that's what you're into. It's a bubble gum packaged direct rip of vintage sunglasses. They're $180 bucks, so it's pretty up there for what it is, but at least you get a feel for what the company's about -- 80's nostalgia! Having fun and 80's nostalgia...

Lack of creativity:9
Gaudiness: 9
Cost effectiveness: 9
Reappropriation: 9
Overall streetwear scale grade: 9/10

'Jumbo Polo'

I like 80's nostalgia (full disclosure: I don't) and I don't like crack, so with that being said... What better way to voice my displeasure than by WEARING A POLO WITH A VIAL OF CRACK ON IT? And what accents crack cocaine better then gold satin taping on the hem, I ask? Nothing!

Lack of creativity: 6
Gaudiness: 10
Cost Effectiveness: 9
Reappropriation: 8
Overall streetwear scale grade: 8.25/10

--Ira

Critiquing Bobby Fresh's Summer 08 apparel Line

Do you know of Bobby Fresh . . . If no, what rock have you been hiding under? Bobby is a cornerstone in the streewear meets sneakers t-shirt movement. After gracing us with the amazing shirts Aqua8Man and Spizike Championship Bobby revamps for a new season

Ill start this off with a statement: I've found my new favorite Streetwear/sneakers tee for Summer '08 . . .

Side note: Ira is Compound getting this instalement of Bobby Fresh, or do I have to order it off KarmaLoop?

Lets start from worst going to best:

Infamous T

This ones is pretty much trash. What do you get when you combine a timberwolves logo with text "the Infamous Bobby fresh" add to that a multicolor graphic that takes way to long and too much money to screen and a dash of "cease and desist" from the nba . . . you get a horrible shirt.

Lack of creativity: 9
Gaudiness: 4
Cost effectiveness: 3
Reappropriation: 2
Overall streetwear scale grade: 5/10

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Addicted to Fresh

Not bad, a good reference to a popular Jay-Z song and great reappropriation to match the Name sake Bobby Fresh. He also get points for timing . . . sometimes you just get lucky and release a Jay-Z tee when Jay-Z's popularity is at an all time high due to his formation of the Ghetto Rat Pack With Lebron . . . But really they need a white guy to play the sammy davis junior role. I also like the "Good Life" Kanye video Text on the Jay-Z glasses I can see a Roc connection.

Lack of creativity: 5
Gaudiness: 7
Cost effectiveness: 7
Reappropriation: 10
Overall streetwear scale grade: 7/10

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Bo-bby Knows T

This might be one of his best to date. It's a great re-use of a old nike shoe/sports star from the 80's. While it lacks in gaudiness, overall it hit all the rest of the scale very well . . . for a shirt perfect to wear while you are campin out at your local niketown. I would have appreciated it if it had two things that bobby knows on the back like baseball & football . . . that would have made it more relevant but your head was in the right place here!

Lack of creativity: 9
Gaudiness: 6
Cost effectiveness: 7
Reappropriation: 9
Overall streetwear scale grade: 7.75/10
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Tits and Bobby Fresh Colab

Bobby Fresh you have just earned your streetwear Green Belt ( the one after white) as your Collab Cherry has just been popped! Why am I not surprised there is a "brand" called TITS? This is by far the Blue Ribbon Piece of the Summer Collection. Naked Chick + Bad Screenprinted Shoes (look to be dunks?) + Horrible "star wars font" Tag Line on Back = The Best streetwear shirt this season!

Lack of creativity: 10
Gaudiness: 10
Cost effectiveness: 10
Reappropriation: 8
Overall streetwear scale grade: 9.5/10


Congrats . . . maybe next season you can get a perfect 10 by doing a collab with Jack in the Box and just picturing a chicks snatch spread eagle with the tag Fresh Kicks Fresh Box. That one works a little better with the whole shoe box / shoe "box" thing . . .

_Cam

Critiquing Nike's new apparel line (THE REMIX)

As astute streetwearriors I'm sure you need no introduction to the magic that is Nike's quickstrike Air Force One tees. Marvel at their April Delivery.

Round two! Let's get it on!

Livin Color


















At first you might think, "wow this tee is about as streetwear as it gets." That's why I'm here. Lets delve a little deeper into the issue. How many colors did they screenprint (answer: all of them)? Streetwear is about cost effectiveness. I mean, they reappropriated the graphic (good), but it would be better if it said something catchy like "Living in Ones." I hear "living in gang colors" is popular, too. Only one company has done that, so it's free game.

Lack of creativity: 9
Gaudiness: 9
Cost effectiveness: 2
Reappropriation: 8
Overall streetwear scale grade: 7/10


Excessive Force


















Is it a weirdly flipped Run DMC logo? I really hope so, since they've got even less to do with AF1's then In Living Color does. But that might be wishful thinking. It looks like it's patent leather, too. Enough talk about what's wrong with this tee, lets talk about what its got going for it: it'll match your jordans. BUT THERE'S ONE CATCH. It's an Air Force One tee, so mandated by streetwear law you cannot wear it with Jordans. BUT THERE'S ANOTHER CATCH. It looks like a Run DMC logo, SO YOU CAN'T WEAR IT WITH AIR FORCE ONES.

Lack of creativity: 7
Gaudiness: 7
Cost effectiveness: 8
Reappropriation: 5
Overall streetwear scale grade: 6.75/10

To Live and Die



















This is it people, The crescendo of streetwear. This is what makes streetwear streetwear. A dead rapper's song title, a shoe reference, huge block letters and a fade print. Somewhere A-ron is crying a single tear.

Lack of creativity: 8
Gaudiness: 9
Cost effectiveness: 8
Reappropriation: 9
Overall streetwear scale grade: 8.5/10

--Ira