It’s time for another look into the hipster culture! This is part V of our ongoing article, Stuff Hipsters Like, where we mention three things of particular importance to the everyday hipster. Today we tackle, PBR, the ironic t-shirt, and foreign cinema.
13. Pabst Blue Ribbon:
Pabst Blue Ribbon beer, affectionately known as PBR, has been the choice for hipsters since the year 2002. The 2002 rise of PBR was led by the hipster contingent in Portland, Oregon and baffled company execs all over the country. It was PBR’s low-cost, and squalid appearance that helped to reinvigorate the brand and to make the domestic beer a hip, trendy beverage. Perhaps hipsters aren’t a bad thing, they saved a classic brand of American beer. However, the hipster crowd has begun embracing other brands such as Miller and now Chimay…
The Pabst company has cautiously jumped on the promotional bandwagon, sponsoring things like NPR programs, indie music events and supporting local dive bars.
The Pabst Brewing company now makes up 2.8% of the domestic beer market.
14. The Ironic T-Shirt:
The ironic t-shirt… Prepare to take second, maybe third glances at people’s chests in an effort to understand the humor behind some of these shirts. It’s unclear where or when this trend began, but it’s clear that it’s reached the mainstream. Finally, hipsters have a reason to support Phil Collins, The Eagles 1984 Tour and The Los Angeles Olympics.
When donning an ironic t-shirt, a hipster is telling the world that he or she is cooler than you. “My shirt speaks volumes about the current genocide in Darfur by making an ironic statement composed of acute political wit and knowledge of intergalactic warfare.” And don’t worry, usually the person wearing the shirt gets the joke.
There was recently a bit on the Colbert Report, where an audience member rose from his seat to ask the host a question. (below)
15. Foreign Cinema
Foreign cinema is kind of a blur for me personally. As a generic rule of thumb though, saying that you’re into genres like Euro-existentialist, French New-Wave, Latin, or Italian neo-realism will get you through any conversation with merit. Mention of directors/writers/producers like Ingmar Bergman, Francois Truffaut, Lars von Trier, or Patrice Leconte will also help score you bonus points. Note that this does not include Japanese animated film, silent film, or (Most) German films. Like fashion, music, and random trivia, cinema has proven a cool thing to be knowledgeable about. Now that hipsters can download these movies to their computers, they can also judge, compare and discuss them in social settings. Foreign film is one of the last cool interests in the world today. We’ve seen high literature, not showering, self-reflection, world music, foreign alcohol and jazz all fall to the wayside in recent years. Enter foreign cinema…
Thanks for coming back for another edition of Stuff Hipsters Like. Stuff Hipsters Like is a recurring feature on the Fabakis blog every Friday.
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Fabakis 