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Metal Merch

HOW MUCH MORE BLACK CAN THESE VALIENT THORR SHOES BE? NONE MORE BLACK.

 Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 at 9:40am by

valient thorr shoeValient Thorr are one of the most entertaining live metal bands on the planet. Valient Himself is one of the most ragingly funny frontmen in existence; Devin Townsend, Frank Mullen, Valient Himself. Dude just has me in fucking stitches before he even opens his mouth. He also sweats more in a 40 minute set than any normal human being does in a lifetime which in and of itself is pretty funny.

But a Valient Thorr shoe? Metal bands partnering with shoe companies to release custom models seems kind of in vogue lately, whatwith the widespread popularity of  Iron Maiden Powerslave Vans and Mastodon Vans. Shit, even not-all-that-popular bands like 3 Inches of Blood have joined the party with an admittedly damn cool line of Nike kicks. But all these shoes are just so fucking flashy, and honestly if I hadn’t been sent a pair of those 3 Inches of Blood hi-tops because I write for a hack metal blog I never would have bought them. Metalheads are plain folk and don’t really strike me as the shoe-collecting crowd, which begs the question: who exactly are these shoes being made for?

In contrast to the flashiness of the above-mentioned metal band sneakers, the new Valient Thorr shoe is plain and simple. It’s being made by Globe Shoes and was designed by Chris Haslam. And crucially: IT’S ALL BLACK! How much more metal than that can you get? Here’s a band that knows their fanbase well. At $70 they might be a little more than some metalheads are looking to spend, but $70 for a well-made pair of sneaks that’ll stand the test of time the mosh-pit is money well spent.

-VN

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  • Lordassenfroth

    i saw them live about 5 years ago and the frontman was Insane! i had no idea what he was saying or really even what he was doing, but it was awesome and very funny. my first thoughts were “damn, that guy is fucking wasted”

    • cougar party

      Saw them 3 months ago w/Early Man. Valient Thor was still fucking insane.

  • WowWee!

    I have a pair of Chucks that are about 4 years used and I just bought a pair of boots the other week for about 40$ and that was pricey for me. Maybe I’m just cheap on shoes but 70$ is a pretty high price for all black shoes. (my Chucks and boots are all black)

  • wha?

    Saw them open for Motorhead once- very entertaining live band. Well worth seeking out.

    That said- the sole of their shoe should also be black. That would push it to 110% metal.

  • http://www.flamingtusk.com Zosimus

    The metal world has clearly learned the primary lesson of latter-day hip hop; namely that building a branded apparel empire is the way to become REAL BALLA.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Rob-Kurkjian/1238131077 Rob Kurkjian

    70 bux for all black shoes is a bit pricey when i can just hit up my local wal mart and pick up some shoes for like 15 bux that are all black. These are miles better than the Iron Maiden and Mastodon Vans at least. Vans are so far from being metal. Scenesters were em

    Anyone here were em out of curiosity?

    • Double D

      I have some checkered vans that I got freshman year of high school (11 years ago). They weren’t in style back then, at least not like they are now. Now they look so gnarly that they actually look cooler. They have holes in ‘em and have been around the block once or twice. I don’t wear them too often, but they are still cool to me. I gotta say though, once this pair bites the dust, I don’t see myself buying new ones.

    • Gaia

      I got me some vans, and I like em, dont really care who else wears them and just they’re shoes who’s actually looking at their feet all the time anyways?

    • stu1

      Vans are so far from being metal, scenesters were them?

      First off, it’s “wear.” Second, I know more “scenesters” and “hipsters” who wear chuck taylors than vans. Scenesters wear all kinds of footwear. It’s amazing, really. They also wear jeans!!!
      I’ve been wearing vans for 20 years, as have many metal heads I know.

      • Genial Gentile

        Ditto. Been wearing vans since the 80′s despite all the trends they’ve been associated with over the years (ska, pop-punk, scene) and the abysmally lame music tour, the old skate rat in me still has a soft spot for ‘em.

  • http://www.johnkanesmith.com FuckethThineSelf

    Why are these guys associated with skateboarding?! volcom, now globe… and posing with Haslam? Maybe thats the niche theyre going after.

    Anyway, their entertaining in a small bar, but mastodons crowd wont be interested. If the front dude aint close to you i doubt its gonna be entertaining. But same if he’s too close… it seemed like the fat fuck was purposefully “head banging” sweat on me. Gross.

    • stu1

      They’re on Volcom Records. And I think they’re skaters. To me, punk and metal have always been closely tied to skating.

      • http://www.johnkanesmith.com FuckethThineSelf

        Damn, I didnt know volcom even had a record co. I guess everyone does everything these days.

        All music is closely tied to skateboarding, i guess I just dont like these guys being “metal” representatives of the skating world, we could do much better. I was happy to learn mastodon and vans collaborated.

        • stu1

          Year Long Disaster, Valiant Thorr, Riverboat Gamblers, ASG, Die Hunnz all have records on Volcom. There’s a few other bands I’m forgetting right now.

  • pony

    Its weird how a lot of bands are getting on skate companies i suppose it all started with bam margera and HIM teaming up with skate decks and also the shoes that sponser bam. the only good side to this i suppose is that at least its chris haslams shoe (which although he was a hip hop style skater in the 90′s has since seen the error of his ways) and chris haslem is one of the best skaters out there. i also find it odd they didnt mention gojiras shoe that they put out there. 70 bucks in the skate shoe world is just above the average shoe price for a decent pair of skate shoes but the good thing about it is when you buy a skate company shoe and that specific shoe is made for skating and not style if you only wear it to walk in it will last you at least five years, im 25 and i have a pair of shoes i got in HIgh school that are just now almost completely worn through on the bottem and i only walk in them the shoes i do skate in dont last more than a year tops. but then again i wait till skate shoes go on sale before i buy them cause just like everyone else im broke. also chris haslem used to have a much longer more metal beard its a shame he cut it.

    • Dirtman73

      You’re obviously too young to remember Anthrax and their skateboard connection back in the late 80′s-early 90s, but they had a killer “Not Man” skateboard available. I think DRI had a skateboard too.

      My point being that bands have been doing this type of crossover marketing for decades.

      • http://www.johnkanesmith.com FuckethThineSelf

        if i remember correctly pushead did a bunch of stuff for thrasher in the late 80s – early 90s too.

  • dude

    I fucking love metal and I fucking love skateboarding…combined=orgy in my pants

  • Alex_P

    I got the Trooper Vans, haven’t worn them much. I figure I’ll keep them for live sets if I ever do any, and stuff like that. I always just wear the same beat-up Adidas sneakers everywhere, especially during the winter. Other pairs of shoes are for the gym or a date (or a date at the gym).

  • http://www.valientthorr.com Valient Himself

    Thanks for the review dudes. Here’s a few notes:
    -Nitewolf pretty much came up with the all black idea, & we convinced them to let us do a mid top rather than the low or hi. It reminded us of old “maiden” style reeboks w/ velcro mixed w/ half cabs.
    -Vans as well as Globe have supported us for a long time. -Volcom has had a record label for like 14-15 years now & we’ve been on it since 2003.
    -just fyi, we don’t consider ourselves “metal” reps for any community. We play lots of different kinds of heavy music all mixed together. Give it a listen and you’ll see what I mean. We have friends on this Earth in many industries & in many bands. We party with all of them.
    -& to “fuckeththineself”, sorry you got doused, I don’t purposefully sweat on anyone. I do fucking bang full on every show tho. If you don’t like it, maybe you should bring a fucking tarp a la Gallagher.
    Cheers boys!
    -valient himself

    • http://www.johnkanesmith.com FuckethThineSelf

      i listen to a lot of music so i can dig it. im probably just angsty about skate culture going to shit.

      haha… touche! it was a rad show. you got a lotta energy dude… mid song pushups were pretty boss. good luck on the tour…

  • http://www.valientthorr.com Valient Himself

    ps Nitewolf and Eidan Thorr are the dudes who skate in the band

  • The Ghost of D. Boon

    They could certainly be more black

  • Bliff Curton

    Great band! Love these dudes!!! The shoes are pretty cool too.

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  • Thomass

    i have those valient thorr shoes and theyre worth it. also i got mine on ebay for 40 so get them on ebay