Nardwuar: The Route One Interview

Tour of London

We picked Nardwuar up from outside his hotel, where he was dressed in his famously eccentric sartorial choices and holding the strain of the tour and last night's Video Vault lingering in his voice, we worried that he might not be up to the interview or even the taxi ride around London, but this is Nardwuar, so what were we so worried about?! Side note: yes, we dressed a London taxi in Nardwuar's iconic Tam o' Shanter tartan, and yes, we put a giant pom pom on top. It's not everyday you get to interview the Human Serviette, after all.

Alright, back on track. Or on road, if you will. Nardwuar hopped in his one-of-a-kind cab with our Bristol store manager and ad hoc interviewer, James Cooke, and we begun our whistlestop tour around the capital, where we delved into everything from pressing records for Lil Uzi Vert to waiting for two days to interview Nirvana. We're not about to spoil the interview that ensued, you can go watch that yourself, but we thought we'd run through some of the highlights of the cab journey. 

Now, we'll be the first to admit we weren't exactly being inconspicuous, but we didn't expect Londoners to be so awestruck by our tartan taxi, so much so that someone interrupted their graduation photos to come meet Nardwuar (and Nardwuar being Nawdwuar, gave them some graduation photos to beat all of her peers). We also gained an incredible insight into the enigmatic soul of Nardwuar, finding out what makes him click, his favourite interviews of all time, and his want to deep dive EVERYTHING. And of course, we had to try to and surprise him and give him a taste of his own medicine, so gifted him a whole range of things, including a Jam record, custom tee inspired by his band The Evaporators, a custom tartan board, as well as a hamper of our favourite quintessentially British snacks to give Nardwuar the full Landan experience.

The Meet & Greet

After going round all of London's hotspots, our final stop was our Route One London store, where he jumped out full of beans ready to give the excitable crowd a show, and he didn't disappoint. Going into his bag of catchphrases to get the hype up, demanding a retort of Doot doo! to every one of his Doot doola doot doo....

We headed on into our Covent Garden store, where guests got early access to purchase the Dunk, and more importantly a chance to meet Nardwuar, get photos and the shoes signed. We couldn't be more gassed that we got to host one of the finest, most thorough music interviewers out there today at our store. Thank you to everyone involved and a special thanks to Nardwuar himself for being everything we expected and more.

And remember... keep on rockin’ in the free world. Doot doo!

The Dunk

Known for his rigorous research which more often than not stuns his subjects into silence, mouth slightly ajar; his unparalleled ability to remain unflustered in situations where most would crumble (*cough* Blur *cough*); and his bold tartan-centric outfits, Nardwuar’s Dunk Low Pro takes lead from the latter, draping the upper of the shoe in the tartan pattern from his iconic Tam o' Shanter, onto Nike SB’s most iconic silhouette.

The red, green, blue, and yellow plaid upper is unapologetic, much like the man himself, divided by a black nubuck Swoosh on the sidewall, sitting in contrast to the loudness around it. Following the Swoosh, a matching woven black tongue and rubber midsole; the latter of which sits on top of a semitranslucent outsole which reveals Nardwuar’s famous catchphrase: Doot doola doot doo... on one shoe, with the expected retort of Doot doo on the other, with the phrase flipped on the black nubuck heel tabs.

Underfoot, cobranded details decorate the insole for an extra touch of Nardwuar’s personality. Nike SB’s usual skate-ready tech is all there, including Air Zoom Unit for impact protection, the foam midsole for a lightweight, responsive cushioning, and the rubber outsole with classic pivot circle for the addition of durable traction and heritage style. The crowning detail, though, the red and blue pom-pom from his tammie sits boldly as a lace adornment on each shoe; but if this ain’t your cup of tea (incidentally, Nardwuar’s tea of choice: Earl Grey) no need to worry, it comes off with a cheeky little snap fastener.

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