Wax Museum

Wax Museum has been bringing Melbourne the finest in alternative beats since 2006. You’ll find it hidden by the Myki gates of the Flinders Street underground.

Local DJ and beatmaker Tim Bartold (who also helps run Northcote’s Dojo Ramen Bar) found the empty Campbell Arcade cranny and shaped it into its present form with friend Michael O'Connell. It’s modelled on a typically cosy Japanese record store, employing raw wood, polished concrete and walls plastered in memorabilia.

The shop stocks some of the most unique hip-hop and electronic vinyl in town. Records come from all around: European warehouses, Brooklyn basements, outer-Tokyo suburbs, and Melbourne garages. Hip-hop and electronica aside, Wax Museum also carries a good portion of soul, funk, jazz and indie.

The staff consists of friendly DJs, performers and promoters. When they’re not manning the shop, you’ll find them hosting parties at Section 8 and Boney. They occasionally put on gigs and get artists in-store, too.

Wax Museum also has its own [record label](https://www.discogs.com/label/167488-Wax-Museum-Records. Collaborations between local and international artists are frequent, joining the dots between local talent and listeners far away.