Photography: Brandon Bowen

Let’s not pretend you never heard of mall goths. Whether you bought into it or watched from the sidelines, they have left an undeniable mark—a byproduct of nu-metal’s chaotic reign and the commercial shadows of goth culture. Their look? A patchwork of rebellion and mass production. Their stomping grounds? Chain stores, food courts, and the liminal fluorescence of your nearest suburban mall. Adidas Superstar was everywhere.

We’re revisiting that energy with photographer Brandon Bowen. Known for capturing the edge of alternative culture—having worked with icons like Marilyn Manson—Bowen’s lens strikes a perfect balance between unsettling and magnetic, making him the ideal collaborator to reinterpret this style for today.

Think of it as mall goth’s revenge. In the photos you’ll see the Adidas Superstar reclaiming its pedestal, bridging the gap between nu-metal’s DIY grit and today’s opium core precision.

This isn’t just nostalgia—this is a refraction of subculture’s fingerprints across decades.

The shoot layers rough silhouettes and industrial chaos with a sleek, post-apocalyptic edge. It’s a methodical, textured declaration.

Adidas Superstar, a shoe that’s been through everything from Run-DMC to Hot Topic, is here to remind you it doesn’t just exist in history. It owns space in whatever timeline we’re spinning now.

Available then, now, and forevermore (we guess), at Slam Jam.