The Coffee Table Book for Your Inner Club Kid

You know you’ve made a cultural impact when you’re simultaneously worshipped and scorned. Such is the case of misShapes, the rock and roll dance party in New York City started by three downtown hipsters named Greg Krelenstein, Leigh Lezark, and Geordon Nicol. Club kids want to be them, fashion editors steal their looks, and snarky internet types mock their weekly postings of party pictures. (Gawker dubbed the gorgeous Lezark “Princess Frosty Coldstare.”) And now you can judge for yourself: those famous internet pictures are now collected in the beautifully shot and edited photo book misShapes.

With contributions by artists such as Ryan McGinley, Scott Meriam, Nick Zimmer and even Karl Lagerfeld, the book is a slice of New York nightlife as well as a compelling survey of street/club fashion trends of the last few years. Regular partygoers received their own pages in the book with multiple images, and it’s fascinating to track their changing looks over the years.

It’s also good for a little stargazing: celebs like Madonna, Yoko Ono, Peaches, Michel Gondry, and Chloe Sevigny all make appearances, amidst the sea of young hipsters. Whatever your take – and for the record, we think wearing crazy eye makeup and dressing like it’s 1986 can be pretty damn hot – the book is difficult to put down. Even if you didn’t make it to the party, you can still see what you missed.

misShapes is available September 4 from MTV Press.