Best Sections of All-Time: Bruce Irons in Magnaplasm

Last week, Travis wrote The Alchemy of Style where he broke down the five essential ingredients that have influenced his style the most. In the article he also challenged all of us to consider what would be our five most influential style essentials.

As I compiled a list on the various things that had influence over my teenage years and ultimately shaped who I am, I’d have to say that Bruce Irons and Volcom topped the list in a critical era. The two were synonymous all through the 90’s and 2000’s. Volcom’s battlecry “Youth Against Establishment” epitomized the teen angst that I felt and Bruce epitomized that same anti-hero attitude. They were the crazy punks that ran the ads in the mags flipping people off.

Volcom also expressed their ”YAE” mantra through an artistic lens on what surfing, music, skateboarding, snowboarding and art meant to them and they did it in their own way. All things that I knew I liked, but didn't quite grasp an understanding until I was led down the rabbit hole to see Bruce’s effortless raw ability. In a time where you only had the magazine once a month to peer into who these surf stars were, Volcom was like a window into the life and mind of Bruce.

In 1998 the highly anticipated release of Magnaplasm is probably more iconic now than it was at the time of release. We float through the mind of Bruce Irons as he cooked breakfast. Plus the entire Volcom band of misfits featured in the film that was headlined by Bruce closing it out in the Mentawaii’s to a track that makes you feel like you’re in some kind of a Mexican Western daydream. Some of the most iconic Bruce Irons shots of all-time live in this 4min surreal surf journey. It will have you in a trance.