As someone who was alive and skating in the 1990’s it’s often amusing and disheartening in equal measure to see said decade descended upon, devoured, and then puked back up by the younger end of today’s skateboard scene hungry for deeper cultural meaning in an era where the vast majority of all skate output is throwaway.
Yes, back in the 90’s people did wear swishy pants, big shoes and went ham on the sports-specific outerwear but, as far as I can remember, this wasn’t done as some semiotic act designed to show everyone how deep you were with ‘street wear’ – it was just what everyone wore.
The skating reflected that too, in some respects at least, but it wasn’t as one-dimensional as the current wave of 90’s skateboard Revisionism might suggest to the outward observer.
For every Mike Graham tracksuit pants line in a F.I.T Industry section, there was an equal number of Ethan Fowler Stereo lines where he was wearing a cardigan, but I guess that doesn’t fit into the current cultural milieu so it gets overlooked. From the perspective of someone old enough to remember the 1990’s/early 2000’s, a lot of this glorification and nostalgia for the same period is, dare I say it, a bit cringe to be honest. A bit like a dressing up party where the theme is a little too vaguely stated beforehand.

With that said however, I think it’s safe to say that if there is one brand out there with its finger on the pulse of revisiting what is currently seen as the Golden Era of street skating, then that brand is DC Shoes.
Reissued classics like the DC Lynx, Brian Wenning back on the team, highlighting dudes switch backtailing the fuck out of above-waist-high ledges (rather than bouncing off things in ‘lines’), and skating heavily documented Plaza spots ‘for the culture’. I defy anyone to watch this 15 minute banger and not think about going to buy some shiny pants. And if we’re going to play dress up, then you better be as committed to it as John Shanahan is, otherwise, don’t bother.
Additionally, whilst the overall vibe of this DC Street Sweeper banger references the 1990’s, the skateboarding contained therein is most definitely up to par (and more) in 2018 terms.
Oh yeah, and if Vegan noodle-boned ATV John Gardner isn’t one of your favourite skaters already, he will be after watching this.
It’s a rare thing to be this stoked on a shoe company clip in this day and age but this one does exactly what it says on the tin. Now, where’s my Nautica jacket?