The Future Of Menswear's Most Popular Archetypes

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Complex Original

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The winds of trendz blow quickly. One minute you're all hyped off dressing head to toe in Japanese collabo camouflage, the next you're trying to look like a Pyrex'd out Edward Scissorhands with fronts. Everyone changes their style up a bit—it's not illegal. In fact, it's actually quite normal. But with today's one stop shop consumer culture some of you are out here trying to re-invent yourself every season and swearing off your old vibe like you all of sudden turned into Jason Bourne and got trend participation amnesia.

I know you think you'll be buried in that HBA tuxedo, but, let's be real, that shit will just as quickly be replaced once you start getting heavy into some Internet acid cowboy vibe that you got gassed on because of some documentary trailer you just saw on Tumblr. So, imma break down 10 archetypes that dudes be going "full retard" on and then sprinkle a little reality salt into that wound in a effort to help demonstrate why swearing off your "old" style for you "new" style is quite the precarious path to walk.

Skip Class is a writer living in Seattle. See more of his work here and follow him on Twitter here.

1. mensweararchetypes

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2. lumberjack

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5. collabros

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7. Japanworkwear

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High-Fashion Was The Case That They Gave Me

Do you fuck with Gucci loafers and rolled up skinny jeans the color of Skittles? Do you have a leather bag that is too small for a laptop, but bigger than a iPad Mini? Then you're probably a high-end fashion victim. Your bathroom is most likely filled with various cologned lotions that are specific to certain body parts. You have belts that cost more than most dude's entire outfits, but are probably stressing the bill that is coming back from your Audi dealer after your last fender bender.

I got some bad news for you lot: You've entered a self-perpetuating cycle of chasing the high-end fashion dragon. You don't believe me? The fashion house world is more treacherous than Game of Thrones, homie. Them Balmain nikers you bought last year will become passé as soon as Yeezy drops his next rant. The dude has already sworn off Louis Vuitton, which is the fashion equivalent of the Red Wedding. You did not see that shit coming. If you did, please explain your luggage situation. Go on, I'll wait.

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10. 96

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2014 AKA 1996

I'm not sure how everyone got their hands on a Delorean and convinced Doc Brizzle to take them back to 96 when shit was riggety real, but apparently it's 1996 regardless of the actual year. I was actually a teenager in the '90s, so I'm not fully upset about this. I just think it's a bit strange. I mean, during the '90s I don't recall us being hyped to feather our hair and take semi-self-aware photos of ourselves posing like disco album covers. But live and let live.

All you 19-year-olds that never owned a Sega Genesis need to be more damn appreciative of the age in which you actually live. You can watch high-def pornographies anytime you want and will never ever have the experience that was calling a girl's house line and have her Dad interrogate you like The Shield just so you could try and holler at her. I don't think this has anything to do with trends, but my salty 30-year-old man just came out swinging. If you grew chin hair yesterday and are wearing a bucket hat, I'd suggest keeping your head down and quietly listening to your Odd Futures.

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