The Macbeth Madrid was released in Vegan materials earlier this year in an all black colorway. The Madrid is styled after a soccer shoe with a thin cupsole, something that in skateboarding become all the rage as of late. While Macbeth has always followed the fashion of skate wear they have never developed a full on skateboard shoes. The Madrid is no different but after a few moments of skating in the shoe, it clearly has the form and functionality that is highly desired in a skateboard shoe. 
Out of the box and ready to lace and as dark a moonless night! Everything goes with black and for some reason (probably vegan synthetics are often black) its a popular color for Vegan skate shoes. 
The toe caps are fitted with a double layer of a soft synthetic-suede. It almost has a felt-like feel and honestly doesn’t seem to far off. Though more of a style element it offers a little bit of a buffer between the canvas and grip-tape and makes for a smooth flick on flip tricks. 
The three elements that make a skateboard shoe truly comfortable; tongue, collar, and insole. The tongue is on the thin side but has just enough padding. Nearly perfect. The mesh is super breathable and doesn’t slide around. The collar and heel have a bead of padding well under the ankle and scoop up the back that allow for really great rotation but at the same time make for an amazing grip on the foot. All this is helped by the cupping of the insole. The photo above gives an idea, with a higher side wall in the heel moving to the mellow arch supports. So far no sliding, everything is staying put, and hammers are being dropped with no heel bruising.
From the front, classy in black!
So about those thin cupsoles… Lots of flex, amazing board feel. They even have the whole radial thing going on other soccer-styled skate shoes. The one thing thats a bit of a let down is how shallow the treads are. First look at these and you can tell they are not long for the world. Such is the life of a thin-cupsole.
After five hours of putting the business end of the Madrid to the grip tape it was instantly apparent the shoe needs more synthetic-suede, a little higher and further back. Perhaps some double or triple stitching too. The canvas is lined but is still not very abrasion resistant compared to some of the other canvas models we’ve put up for review.
The fit of the shoe is spot on. Possibly the most accurate in sizing I’ve ever skated. This is why all the other elements of the Madrid work so well. From the toe feel and flick, to the cupping of the heel and insole. Everything is on point when a shoe fits well and Macbeth has it down on the Madrid. If you’re lazy and hate tying shoes, you can jam your feet into a laced up pair, jump on your board, and not even tighten the laces.
Macbeth has always followed the style of skateboard shoes. They even had a few lines that featured ads with skateboarding like the Emerson. After skating a few minutes with The Madrid its easy to say Macbeth has finally come up with a very functional skate shoe. The durability needs a little work. Synthetics are nothing new to the company and they always have a stellar Vegan line up, future models of the Madrid would be excellent in a synthetic-nubuck like the now defunct Pendleton.
Our all Black Madrid review pair came in a little late in the season however there are still many sizes available, plus the summer colorway in Midnight Blue and White looks really great too!
MACBETH
Black sizes 6,9-13 $59.99
Midnight/White size 5-13 $59.99
ZAPPOS
Black sizes 5-8,9.5-13 $47.99
Midnight/White size 5-13 $60.00
LOSERKID
Black sizes 8.5-13 $60.00
