Where can I begin with these fine young men. I first discovered both Babylon Cartel & AnmlHse a couple of weeks ago when I hit up the Trillectro music festival in Washington, DC. The fact that they both had a really good amount of merchandise is what drew them to me from the get go. I'm so tired of seeing the same old "designers" release the same old "dope t-shirt lines". Can we all agree that this trend needs to die? To me, the point of creating your own line is to encourage innovation, especially in a fashion world that is slowly becoming more and more uniform.
Babylon Cartel was born in Philadelphia, PA but has since relocated to LA. Don't go thinking their name is one they just grabbed out of the sky because it sounds cool. It's meaning is actually pretty amazing. They describe how they came up with it perfectly on their website.
" Babylon, from the Hebrew “Babel” is interpreted to mean confusion, and by definition, a cartel is a formal agreement among competitors. The meaning behind “Babylon Cartel” is the joining of the often conflicting and confusing elements of mind, body and soul to work together to originate the most inventive forms."
Genius, and you see it in their merchandise as well. Every single piece in their collection has its own little back story, which makes the experience of wearing their clothing all the more enjoyable. It is literally is the definition of artwork you can wear. My current favorite is their Adidas Originals collaboration Trap Paradise Shirt (above). The imagery is stunning...most likely my next BC purchase as soon as they restock!
Lets talk about AnmlHse. These guys are a crew that found each other while at Art School also in Philadelphia. I find that their line not only incorporates art themes, but it's reflective of pop culture as well. The Warhol "Anml Soup" tee and the Youth in Revolt '89 snapback are my favorites. Of course they're both sold out, people know quality. I really shouldn't be complaining though, I still managed to buy a couple of their pieces when I met with them and BC at Trillectro. You all may remember the B&W varsity scrimmage pro-mesh jersey from my last post which was from AnmlHse. I also had to buy the Boobs tank in black as well that day. Honestly, how could I resist?
I promise you won't be disappointed if you check out both of these amazing up-and-coming design brands. There's a little something for everyone. Look out for more in-depth video coverage of both BC & AnmlHse in the coming future. These are a group of designers I definitely want to keep my eyes on.
oxo
