Music Culture for the Obsessed

Music isn't background. For the people we write for, it's a way of life. Platinum and Spin is Luxe After's music section — for vinyl collectors, DJ culture enthusiasts, and anyone who's ever travelled for a record store or planned a trip around a gig. We cover the albums that defined eras, the stores worth making a pilgrimage to, and the art of building a collection that means something.

The Vinyl Revival

Vinyl was supposed to be dead. Streaming won. Convenience won. And yet — vinyl sales have grown every year for over a decade. The revival isn't nostalgia alone. It's a reaction to the intangible. Streaming gives you access; vinyl gives you ownership. The ritual matters: pulling a record from the shelf, placing it on the platter, dropping the needle. The sound is different — warmer, some say, or at least more present. The artwork is tangible. The act of listening becomes intentional. We cover the vinyl revival without the hype — what's driving it, what's worth buying, and how to participate without falling for every limited-edition cash grab.

Who's buying? Everyone from Gen Z discovering physical media for the first time to boomers who never stopped. The demographic is broad. The reasons vary: sound quality, collectibility, the ritual, the artwork, the sense that you're supporting artists more directly. Record Store Day has become an event. Labels are pressing more vinyl than they have in decades. The infrastructure — pressing plants, distribution — has struggled to keep up. That's created bottlenecks and occasionally inflated prices. But the demand is real. The question is how to participate without getting ripped off.

Streaming gives you access; vinyl gives you ownership. The ritual matters: pulling a record from the shelf, placing it on the platter, dropping the needle.

What Makes a Great Record Store

A great record store has character. The staff knows their stock. The curation reflects a point of view. You can find the obvious titles, but you can also discover something you didn't know you wanted. The best stores reward the dig — the crate-diggers who show up every Saturday, the collectors who ask for the weird stuff, the newcomers who get a thoughtful recommendation. We cover the shops worth travelling for: the Tokyo stores with impossible-to-find pressings, the London institutions that have survived decades, the New York spots where gold still turns up. We're not interested in chain stores or tourist traps. See our guide to the world's best record stores.

The physical space matters. A good record store has a layout that makes sense — or at least a sense of discovery. The bins are organised. The lighting is decent. The staff doesn't hover but is available when you need them. And crucially: the pricing is fair. There are stores that gouge. There are stores that reward loyalty. The best ones make you want to come back. They become part of your routine. They're community spaces as much as retail spaces.

DJ Culture History

DJ culture has evolved from the disco era to the festival main stage — but the roots matter. The selector in the Bronx who extended the break. The Chicago house pioneers who built a genre from a drum machine. The Ibiza DJs who turned the island into a pilgrimage. The nineties club scene that fused everything into something new. The best DJs still understand the craft: reading a room, building a set, taking people somewhere. We cover the culture, the history, and the artists who've shaped how we experience dance music. We're interested in the selectors, not just the producers. See our complete history of DJ culture.

The technology has changed — turntables to CDJs to laptops to whatever comes next — but the core skill hasn't. A great DJ is a curator. They're not just playing songs; they're building a narrative. They're reading the room. They're taking risks. The festival headliner might be a different beast than the underground selector, but the best of both understand that they're in conversation with the crowd. They're not performing at you; they're performing with you.

The Nineties Club Scene

The nineties were a pivot. House had broken through. Techno had spread from Detroit. Drum and bass was emerging from the UK. The club was the laboratory — the place where genres collided, where the underground met the mainstream, where a generation learned to dance. The Paradise Garage had closed, but its spirit lived on. The Hacienda, Ministry of Sound, Twilo — these venues defined an era. The albums that came out of that moment still sound vital. We publish deep dives into the records that shaped the decade and the scenes that produced them. See our ten albums that defined the nineties club scene.

What made the nineties special was the convergence. You had the UK rave scene, the New York house scene, the Detroit techno scene, the Chicago sound — all feeding into each other. DJs were playing across genres. Producers were sampling everything. The result was a decade of innovation that we're still processing. The music from that era holds up. The culture that produced it — the all-night parties, the warehouse raves, the superclubs — shaped how we think about nightlife today.

The club was the laboratory — the place where genres collided, where the underground met the mainstream, where a generation learned to dance.

Building a Collection

Starting a vinyl collection can feel overwhelming. What do you buy first? How do you avoid overpaying? What's the difference between a first pressing and a reissue? We publish practical guides that help you build a collection with intention — one that reflects your taste and doesn't empty your wallet for the wrong reasons. The goal isn't to own everything; it's to own what matters to you. See our guide to building a vinyl collection from scratch.

Music and Travel

Music and travel have always been intertwined. You plan a trip around a festival. You visit a city for its record stores. You seek out the jazz clubs in New Orleans, the techno temples in Berlin, the sound system culture in Kingston. The best trips often have a soundtrack — and sometimes the music is the reason you went. We cover the intersection of music and travel: venues worth the journey, cities that reward the music-obsessed, and how to structure a trip around what you want to hear.

Some cities are music destinations. Berlin for techno. Nashville for country. New Orleans for jazz. Memphis for blues. Detroit for the history. Tokyo for the record stores. London for the diversity. You can build an entire trip around a venue, a festival, or a pilgrimage to a legendary spot. The key is to do the research. The best venues aren't always the most obvious. The best experiences often require a bit of planning and a willingness to go off the beaten path.

Iconic Albums

Some albums define a moment. They capture a sound, a scene, a feeling that can't be replicated. We publish deep dives into the records that shaped genres, scenes, and generations — from the underground club scene of the nineties to the jazz classics that still sound fresh. We're interested in the stories behind the music and why certain records still matter. What made them work? What did they influence? Why do they endure?

The albums that last do so for a reason. Sometimes it's the production — a sound that hadn't been heard before. Sometimes it's the timing — they captured a moment. Sometimes it's the cultural impact — they changed how people thought about music or about themselves. We're not interested in canon for its own sake. We're interested in the records that reward repeated listening, that reveal new layers, that still sound vital decades later. Those are the ones worth owning on vinyl.

What We Cover

Platinum and Spin covers music culture in its fullest sense. We publish guides to record stores, vinyl collecting, DJ culture, and the albums that defined eras. We help you build a collection, plan a music-focused trip, and understand the culture that shapes how we experience sound.

We approach music as lifestyle. Not in the superficial sense — we're not selling you a vibe. We're recognising that for many people, music is central to how they experience the world. It shapes where they travel, what they collect, how they spend their time. We write for those people. The ones who plan trips around record stores. The ones who still care about album art. The ones who believe that the right song at the right moment can change everything. If that's you, you're in the right place.

Who This Section Is For

Platinum and Spin is for anyone who takes music seriously. You might be a new vinyl collector who wants to avoid rookie mistakes. You might be a seasoned digger looking for the next store to visit. You might be curious about the nineties club scene or the albums that defined it. We meet you with the kind of detail that rewards the obsessed.

Explore Our Music Content

Start with our guide to the world's best independent record stores worth making a pilgrimage to. Dive into the ten albums that defined the underground club scene of the nineties. Read our history of DJ culture. Or learn how to build a vinyl collection from scratch without getting ripped off.