How Vans’ New Sneakers Trace The Brand’s Hardcore History

In a London gallery, hardcore band Youth of Today is rattling the pristine white walls. Perched on a tower of speakers, lead singer Ray Cappo shouts to a frenzied group of men huddled below, the crowd’s forceful movements and chants reflecting his. Cappo was summoned here by Vans, a brand he latched onto in high school. He first noticed the brand on the back-cover of Los Angeles band Wasted Youth’s 1981 debut, Reagan’s In, where a mid-air man in Vans flips above a crowd. “I gotta find out where to get these freaking skateboarding sneakers,” Cappo says on-stage recalling his pursuit. “You couldn’t buy Vans—if you lived in Connecticut you couldn’t get them, they didn’t have ‘em. This was in 1983, and so I hard to mail-order to get those…and I wore them with such great pride.” Swedish menswear brand Our Legacy became the latest Vans collaborator over the weekend with the release of a collection of hardcore-inspired apparel and shoes in black, white, and orange. Our Legacy co-founder Jockum Hallin, who watches the Youth of Today performance from stage left, toured with the brand in the ‘90s. Part of his aim with the collection was to create something reminiscent of that era in both theme and quality. Read more at Sole Collector.