Neil: San Francisco in the sixties was defined by the counterculture it became a Mecca for. The “Hippie” movement found a home there like nowhere else on earth- and no band or group of people defined that period in Frisco quite like the Grateful Dead. Forming from different crumbling bands all over the city and fueled by their acid-induced visions of new age music, the Dead redefined the live show and music itself for years to come. With their roots in blues and folk music, they quickly became the World’s biggest ‘jam’ band, with most of their concept based in mind-bogglingly long versions of their standard set rather than radio-friendly singles. Most famously, the Dead played several shows over 6 hours long at their hometown’s Winterland Ballroom, including songs that went on for half an hour on extended jams. Characterized by psychedelic imagery, such as colorful dancing bears and their signature lightning-bolt filled skull, the Dead live on as one of the most unique and legendary bands of all time.
Mekaael: The Grateful Dead Nike SB pack released in a trio, including a yellow colorway, orange colorway and a green colorway. The orange pair is fully orange excluding the Nike Swoosh and the sole, which are both a shade of green. The green and yellow colorways have the same color blocking pattern as the orange except the swoosh and midsole are a light shade of blue. The collaboration has been one of the craziest releases in 2020, with the details on the shoe being out of this world and the resell value also being extremely relative to the retail price.
As mentioned above, the prices on all of the pairs are insanely high. The pairs released on July 24th at a handful of specific sneaker stores and following that would release online. The retail price was $110 USD and from there only went up. The yellow pair (which is the cheapest out of the three) is being sold for between $960 and $2,300 USD. The green pair (which is the second cheapest) is being sold anywhere from $1,300 and $3,500. Finally, the most expensive pair, the orange colorway. This pair is being sold anywhere from $3,300 to $6,400. Many people wouldn't understand why these shoes are being sold for such ridiculous prices, but sneaker enthusiasts would understand. The details. This sneaker has been made to perfection, with the sneaker having various details that many people who aren’t sneakerheads would look past. Firstly, the materials on these SBs are a mix of suede material and fur. Yes, fur. On top of that, the quality of the suede and fur are remarkable compared to some of the other Nike sneakers which have the same materials. Secondly, on the tongue there is a Grateful Dead bear holding up the Nike logo. On top of that, the tongue is also a small pouch, which can be opened with the zipper. Although the pouch isn’t extremely big, one would be able to keep money inside of the pocket, and the concept of it is mindblowing and we’ve only seen something similar on the Travis Scott Air Jordan 1s. On top of that, the insole has a graphic of all five of the Grateful Dead bears together. Although this shoe may be odd looking to people, the shoe connects to the band itself, being extremely unique and the first of its kind.
Overall 10/10. The shoe itself is extremely unique and brings two different cultures together, rock music enthusiasts and sneaker heads.
Photo: GQ
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