2009 - BEST OF THE BEST SNEAKERS

BEST SNEAKERS 2009.
THE INTRODUCTION

What a fubar of a year it’s been. With more ups and downs than Steve Fossett, the entire world seemed to undergo a personality change virtually overnight. In the footwear realm, the sidestep to single colour uppers and basic fabrications gained momentum so much so that by the end of the year, eighties/nineties running can now officially be declared dead and buried, even if our own Sneaker Freaker x New Balance 850 proved what can be done with a bit of ingenuity, not to mention a compelling back story and nutty colourway.

In review, it was definitely a year of mixed nuts. adidas was probably the prime mover, with ObyO repeatedly kicking heads. James Bond was solid and Jeremy Scott is officially mad as a cut snake, but I think everyone would have Kazuki in their favorites of the year. So understated and on point, it was as if the materials were able to speak for themselves. Genius! The adi-Zeitfrei by Solebox and Hypebeast also went under the guard of many, but for me it was the freshest lo-roller I’ve sampled yet.

Over at Nike, things seemed to be pretty much business as usual, but upon reflection, highlights were significantly reduced this year. Livestrong was just that, while the Dizzee Rascal ‘Tongue and Cheek’ and Pattas saved the day for Air Max as a franchise. The return of the Presto did it for many and the Supreme Bruins were formidable. However, the mooted return of ACG mysteriously never gained the momentum we predicted, with the awesome Salbis marked ‘DO NOT MAKE!’ and the Morizaba and brilliant Ashiko boot left to duke it out as the last soldiers standing. Older heads love this stuff dearly but the trail literally went cold for ACG in 2009.