shoe/dvd review: Carroll select/EMB LE

In all honesty, I have about 5% the shoe knowledge and expertise as this guy. I have never used the word "colorway" in actual conversation. However, if ever a shoe warranted a dissertation on this site or any other, it is this one, especially considering it comes with a dvd of archival EMB/SF footage.

First, the shoe itself. It is reminiscent of a half cab or a vans Carroll, with the "vulcan" sole that all the kids are into these days. I gotta tell ya, I was never a big half-cab loyalist. They always felt like the soles were like 1/8" thick. I was always more partial to soles that approximated the zig-zag pattern of the adidas superstar, like in the first e's Muska or whatever the fuck. The "all-over print" video grab deal is printed on this shiny full-grain leather type stuff. Like the box, I will probably trip out on it when I'm drunk. Truth be told, this is the only "all-over print" item in my entire wardrobe. The other residents of my house, on the other hand, have a shitload:
sample of the all-over print craze. note handmade all-over print Thomas the Tank Engine quilt.
. And now the dvd.




dedication




The dvd is divided into 4 sections: "1990-2", "Daly City to EMB", "Paul's Ramp", and "The Anatomy of a Line" (I think). The "Daly City to EMB" section is probably the most interesting, because it breaks down in an hour-by-hour basis, not unlike Ulysses, a typical day of skating in 90-91, including almost getting in fights with old dudes in 1977 Cutlass Supremes. The commentary is typical self-depricating Carroll fare, including matter-of-fact discussion of the first time he did ecstasy. NOTE: it seems like the goofiest drug ever now, but at the time it was kind of progressive.
(By the way:does anyone even do ecstasy anymore? It seems like it has been overtaken in popularity by Oxycontin, vic's and percs. Coke, on the other hand, is as popular as ever. Very consistent drug, in terms of popularity, if you don't count the late 80's crack craze. It never switched. )
In terms of the skating herein, you get evidence of how insanely progressive Carroll was without really thinking about it. Case in point: fakie tre over a double-sided curb in 1990 and a trick that Lee Smith performed in an ad like 2 months ago. Oh yeah, he also admits that the ns nollie heel out in Questionable was not, in actuality, a legit nollie heel, but rather a bastardized pressure flip kinda thing. If that kind of admission trips you out, you might possibly appreciate this shoe/dvd.