All Things Hipster

Total hipster shirt.

#363: Weezer

Ah, Weezer. A band that has changed so many times it’s hard to believe they were hipsters from the beginning. But first to place Weezer within the context of hipsterdom.

An important aspect of the hipster culture is that it is always changing and never stagnate. While listening to Kid Cudi in  may have been the norm for hipsters in 2008, since he has become mainstream he is no longer considered prime hipster listening material. Once something has become accepted by the Bros and Bro-hos of the world, hipsters stop listening. Hipsters absolutely despise the Bros, and the battle of the douches has been largely underground and ignored by mainstream media. But where does Weezer fit into all of this?

Weezer emerged as one of the best rock outfits with their classic self-titled debut, affectionately known to fans and critics alike as the blue-album. Weezer spawned the classic singles “Buddy Holly”, “Undone (The Sweater Song),” as well as equally good non-singles “Only in Dreams” and “In the Garage.” It is one of the best rock albums of all time. OF ALL TIMES. What’s interesting though is that no-one predicted the band’s success; even frontman Rivers Cuomo had low expectations. Launched by Spike Jonzes’ video for ‘Buddy Holly’, Weezer verifiably hit the mainstream.

Cuomo realized that with his success, his band was starting to be enjoyed by not only hipsters but also the “Bros” — a group of suburban truck-driving “Brosefs” and their Bro-hos who go dirt-bike riding on the weekends and ruined metal music for the rest of us. So he enrolled at Harvard, had a painful leg-extending operation, and wrote the emo and hipster magnum opus Pinkerton. Weezer’s sophomore album pleased the hipsters, but was critically panned and disowned by the Broskis. Their wanted “MORE RAWK!!!” and threw out their Weezer CDs in favor of Blink-182 and No Doubt. “That shit is fuckin rockin’.”

Interest in Pinkerton started to pick up once the band went on hiatus, and by 2000, it had solidified as a cult classic. Rivers, however, wasn’t happy with this; he desperately wanted the support of the middle-class Brohams. With “Hash Pipe” and later “Beverly Hills”, Rivers sought to find the middle-ground between Bro music and Hipster music. His efforts have been alternatingly successful, and most of Weezer’s hits since 2000 have reached at least gold status (500,000+ copies sold). The band, especially Brian Bell, have been hipster-mainstays since the 90s, and their rawkish hipster songs, their “pork and beans” keep on coming. Good on you Weezer. Remember to stay true to your hipster roots.

#364: MC Hammer

MC Hammer was a hipster before hipsters existed. He is the granddaddy of all hipsters. While most hipsters became hipsters in the mid- to late-2000s. Hammer was donning hipster garb in the early 90s, and launched hipster protégé Robert William Van Winkle (Vanilla Ice) into the mainstream “Ice Ice Baby.” Without this hip-hop duo, it’s possible that the hipsters we know today may have never existed. Hammertime! Follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Mchammer.

#365: Ray-Ban Wayfarers.

Ray-Bans have become ubiquitous in hipster culture. The sunglasses have ridden waves in popularity, with initial successes in the 1950s and 60s and a new peak in the ’80s. In fact, chances are if you see someone wearing Wayfarers, it’s a good chance they’re either a hipster or a wanna-be hipster. The trend started sometime in the early 2000s, and have since become staples for Killers frontman Brandon Flowers, former OC starlet Mischa Barton (a total hipster, pictured) and celebrity hipsters everywhere.