Don’t call it a comeback! Alphanumeric is returning to the scene after an all too long hiatus with a line of tees and some basic outerwear this spring. As one of the original companies to fuse hip hop and street culture into their skate designs, some of you grown ass men out there may recall their clever ad campaigns and clean designs that breathed fresh air into a stagnating pool of cartoon graphic tees and skate decks. Don’t get me wrong, those had their place too, but it’s great to see yet another of the godfathers of this culture rear it’s head again.

While a lot of eyes will be drifting towards the larger graphics on the Add It Up tee, anyone with a sense of history will be psyched on the simple logos that A# cut their teeth on back in the 90’s.

The educational aesthetic remains a recurrent theme in the line, with a fresh focus on social justice and protest. As much as I may prefer the simple logos, Alphanumeric shows it has evolved with the times to create more contemporary full frontal graphics that are just as powerful.

Have I already become the crotchety elder complaining about the kids these days not knowing their roots? There’s no purple, neon, metallic colors to be seen. Here’s to changing things up and appreciating the classics.

My only complaint thus far regarding this new line is the lack of east coast love. According to the store locator those of us east of the Mississippi will have a tough time finding these tees in local shops. Sure, online sales are an option, but it’s nice to get outside once in awhile. Maybe A# wants to really bring back the 90’s vibe and start another east coast/west coast rivalry. Don’t fan those flames dudes! The east coast has love too! Promise!

I also wouldn’t mind seeing a return to some of the more technical jackets and other pieces Alpha used to be known for. This is a great start though, and I can’t wait to fill everyone in on what else is in store for the brand.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 6th, 2008 at 12:24 am and is filed under Fashion, Clothing, Men. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.