adidas Decade Hi

• MODEL: ADIDAS DECADE HI
• SERIES: ADIDAS FOUR ELEMENTS
• MADE IN: CHINA
• MADE ON: --/08
• ART.NO: 078883

One of adidas Originals’ most slept-on series is the Four Elements of hip hop series (also known as the 4E series). These releases are extremely hard to find because they were not limited runs, thus the typical wave of hype beasts and re-sellers didn’t pick them up to make a quick buck, and therefore the shoes were actually bought to be worn. Even information and photos are few and far between. Nearly all of the kicks have the Four Elements emblem (a number ’4′ next to a letter ‘E’, written in a diamond formation signifying the four elements of hip hop) displayed on the tongue, but some of them don’t (such as the burgundy and gold Superstar’s from 2008), making it even more challenging to correctly identify them all.

This beautiful remake of the Decade Hi is made of textured leather, designed to imitate the look and feel of cardboard. For those who aren’t familiar with hip hop culture, early break dancers could often be found bustin’ their moves atop splayed out cardboard boxes on the sidewalk. Thus this release is meant to represent breakdancing, one of the four elements of hip hop culture. The side of the upper is stamped with an adidas logo bearing the text “PET.PENDING 19×23″.

The majority of the shoe is made of browns and golden oranges, with a contrasting dash of burgundy, giving an elegant look to the otherwise downplayed and streetwise colorway. The toe box and upper is printed leather, patterned to look like cardboard. The side stripes, eyelet strips, and toe box bridge are light tan leather. The tongue, laces, and Four Elements (4E) logo are done in a deep, rich burgundy.

The collar of the heel is made of tan colored textile, padded for comfort, and wrapped with a darker orange-ish brown leather strip for ankle support. The molecular patterned out sole is split between a light tan and dark grey (nearly charcoal) colored rubber, with the latter filling in the both portion.

Like most Decade’s, these shoes are extremely comfortable and perfectly applicable for sports as well as leisure wear. Quite hard to come by these days – and even harder to match – this pair of Four Elements Decade Hi’s are definitely one of adidas Originals’ rarer basketball gems.

written by Dylan Cromwell

photography by errol