2019 Gift Guide - Best Gifts For Him (Picks From a Pop-Culture Obsessed Dad)
We get it. It’s hard to buy presents for chill, grown-up-ish dad-dudes like us. That’s why the internet tells you we want whiskey stones (please, no more we’re already been gifted enough to build a dog house outta them), leather lunch bags (really?), caffeinated shaving cream (why?!?) and recreational throwing axes (some of us can’t even hang a picture on the wall so this just seems like a bad idea).
Here at MiLOWE Mag we’ve got you covered in terms of alternative gift options for that pop culture-loving dad or dad-adjacent person in your life. And not to throw all those other “Cool Gifts For Dads” holiday gift guides under the proverbial murder bus, but when it comes to pop culture gift lists the options are usually A) ugly B) questionably licensed or C) good for a quick chuckle and then donated away unused four years later when you’re moving apartments again and you realize you’ve used your “Game of Thrones” Desert Cookbook exactly zero times in your life, regardless of how intriguing the idea of Targaryen Tiramisu may be. So without further ado, here’s some quality options to wow, woo and perhaps even warm your favorite dad-ish dudes:
I’m usually pretty unenthused when it comes to affordable tech gifts but how cool is this thing?!? A hardback notebook with beautifully designed gold foil Bluetooth MIDI piano keyboard. Now your guy can finally check off “Become Taylor Swift” from his life to-do list.
Half of my wardrobe is “cloud washed” or some variation of this minimal, super trendy 2019 version of tie dye. It’s just enough style to prove you care about how you look while still keeping your wardrobe vibes way chill. Plus you can’t really go wrong with any of Mollusk’s surf-chic clothing, from tees and patch hats to crazy comfy fisherman sweaters. Just be warned that their super relaxed, surfer dude vibes extend into customer service and shipping timelines so order early and try not to harsh their mellow with your holiday stress.
It’s a known fact that as Young Dads age into Slightly-Less-Young-Dads our circulatory systems promptly shut down and we become cold-blooded like desert iguanas and are pretty much always chilly. So we need blankets. And this one is not just snug and comfy but also becomes a walking resume of our Super Dad Sleep Powers.
I first discovered these colorful and simple-to-set-up turntables at a super hip hotel in Silverlake and couldn’t stop playing with the thing. Perfect for the music lover who needs an easy way to listen to vinyl without all the requisite studio-grade audio equipment or wants to spin records on the go (because it’s got it’s own Transformer-style folding suitcase feature!). Alternatively, this could be a great first turntable for younger family members just getting into vinyl for the first time. And in case you have a miniature fetishist family member or a cousin that’s been “Honey, I Shrunk The Kids”-ed into a micro-human, Crosley also makes a thoroughly unnecessary but insanely adorable stocking stuffer-sized mini record player that plays three-inch records!
5. Retro Japanese Vinyl
Unsung Japanese pop from the late 70’s and early 80’s has been making a major splash on the stateside indie scene as of late so now is the time to get your favorite music nerd hooked on some of the figureheads of the era while they’re still kinda obscure. And the fine folks over at We Want Sounds have been killing it with gorgeous vinyl reissues complete with OBI stripes, download codes and rad-tacular cover art. Where to begin? For synth-hipsters that love LCD Soundsystem and Hot Chip, start with Ryuichi Sakamoto’s cult classic solo debut “Thousand Knives Of.” For fans of Bjork and FKA Twigs, go for Akiko Yano’s genre-bending debut “Japanese Girl” – she’s been described as the Japanese Kate Bush and this is the perfect entry point into her astoundingly innovative back catalog. And for the hardcore “Been-there-heard-that” music snob, toss them headfirst into City Pop, one of the country’s most amorphous sub-genres with Yukihiro Takahashi’s “Saravah!” album, an unholy combination of lounge, funk, soft rock, R&B and jazz that has influenced all those weird vaporwave bands people keep Tweeting about.
6. Mountain Melodies Cedar Board Thumb Piano
Instruments make THE BEST toys ever, especially when they are intuitive and charming like this beautifully crafted thumb piano. Easy to learn and play (even with tiny toddler hands) and available in electric versions so you can plug into an amp and go crazy. Plus it’s not a drum set, so there’s that.
This massive graphic novel tome clocks in at 1,328 pages and checks all the important pop-cult boxes. Want something that blends the intergalactic epicness of “Star Wars” with the ruthless we’re-going-to-murder-your-favorite-character-now vibes of “Game of Thrones” but with a healthy dollop of “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” snark-charm? “Saga” has it all and more. Eisner-winning writer Brian K. Vaughan and artist/co-creator Fiona Staples have created what’s simply become the best graphic novel out there.
8. Defenders of the Faith: The Heavy Metal Photography of Peter Beste
Just because your guy’s a dad now doesn’t mean he’s any less metal or grindcore or melodic doom sludge metal or whatever he was into in college. And this devilishly entertaining photo book will provide endless hours of inspiration as he slaves away at planning the perfect patch jacket for his tiny human offspring who are now listening to that Rockabye Baby Napalm Death album on Spotify.
A perfect combo of family fun and nostalgia: from the awesome VHS case packaging and the “classic Blockbuster parking lot” game board to film titles that lean heavily on the classic era of video rental. This engaging game is a delightful and socially acceptable way to completely emotionally and mentally obliterate family members that didn’t spend their teenage years watching laserdiscs in basements.
If you’re shopping for a dad between the ages of 20 and 78, chances are he watches “Rick & Morty” so you probably need to at least acknowledge his love of the Best Television Show Ever with this obligatory Funko figurine, perfect as a desk ornament or to keep on the bedside table as dream-fuel. Because who doesn’t want a healthy dose of nihilism this holiday season? Also acceptable: you could just Google search “Pickle Rick” and wormhole your way through literally endless toys, comics, vinyl figurines and stuffed Etsy creations devoted to one of the show’s most iconic episodes. Dadular satisfaction guaranteed.
11. Criterion Channel Subscription
Listen, they already have Disney+ and Apple+ and Netflix and an obsessively chronologized and alphabetized DVD collection that is slowly becoming totally obsolete along with all other forms of physical media but sometimes we put off buying gifts until it costs an infuriating sixty-eight dollars to ship that perfect stocking stuffer from the next state over. So save yourself the hassle and gift them a subscription to the Criterion Channel. As a result of expert curation by the Criterion team and guest curators like Guillermo del Toro, Mira Nair and Barry Jenkins it’s simple to discover high-quality films from any decade. Plus there’s no Reality TV to distract you from growing your cultural knowledge base. This is basically film school in one streaming platform.
Happy shopping!
- Chris
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