crooked tongues magazine News Features

The PUMA Suede deserves to be treated with reverence. Personally, we prefer this shape to the Clyde for the shape and easier, less expansive fit, plus the fact we were raised on Suedes and States back in the 1980s aids that favouritism. In 2006, we flipped out over the Japanese made Clyde Zillas and there's been Japanese made PUMAs in the last couple of years that we couldn't lay our hands on. It's nice to get a release in stock. German brands have a legacy of being made in a substantial scattering of different factories, so variants are part of the story. That in turn gave us different shapes, decade by decade. We all seem to own at least a couple of pairs that are he same in name only because of those licensing deals. This 1968 silhouette is still one of the most perfect shoe designs ever, alongside the Superstar and Chuck Taylor, and it isn't going to fade away any time soon. After the Shadow Society delivered the goods (a GORE-TEX version was very much appreciated) on the States, it's time for the Suede to get an equally loving treatment to follow up that slew of the shoe in 2009. Made in Japan, these feel a little narrower, less built up in terms of lining and the footbed detailing's great, giving these a welcome 1980s feel. The suede's of an impeccable quality, which is always a bonus for a shoe called the Suede and the build's brilliant. Not a lot for us to complain about. Using the bag box on these was a fail though —they're eco-friendly but they stack like crap. Please, please PUMA — bring back some archive boxes to match the quality of projects like this. This trio of colourways (and we can't call a favorite, because both navy and red are superb) should be in the Crooked Tongues store tomorrow…