Analogue Music is a Vinyl Collectors Paradise

In a town filled with historic charm and indie spirit, Analogue Music sits right at home on Rochester High Street. It's a haven for vinyl lovers, collectors, audiophiles and anyone who still believes music should be something you touch and feel as much as something you listen to.

Step through the door and the world instantly softens. Warm crackles play through the store’s speakers, wooden crates are stacked with everything from rare grooves, soul & funk and dance music to popular releases and there’s no mistaking that unmistakable scent of cardboard sleeves and nostalgia. It’s a place that feels modern yet lived-in, loved, and quietly iconic.

Record shops have slowly become part of Rochester’s creative rhythm again. For visitors wandering the High Street or locals returning to familiar corners of the town, Analogue Music offers something that is still cherished; a place where music is explored slowly, record by record, conversation by conversation.

On a recent visit the shop was busy, a mix of students browsing the wooden crates alongside slightly older collectors flicking carefully through the racks. There’s a gentle rhythm to the space. People pausing, listening and discovering.

Behind the counter is Alistair, the owner of Analogue Music, warm and welcoming. We’ve visited the shop many times before, but today we pause long enough to talk.

“How long have you been open?” I ask.

“Three years,” he says.

Around us, crates of records rest on waist-high tables, their coloured spines forming quiet stripes of colour.

“So how’s business?” I ask. “Is it true vinyl is back?”

Alistair smiles at the question.

“It never really went away,” he says.

“Business is pretty good. We get a steady stream of customers.”

Collectors will find plenty to get excited about. Limited editions, coloured vinyl, classic albums and rare finds sit alongside more familiar releases, while newcomers get a gentle introduction to the world of analogue listening. There’s no snobbery here, no gatekeeping, just genuine enthusiasm.

Our conversation drifts to the music industry itself, particularly how the physical format is made today.

“Are records still pressed here in the UK?” I ask.

“It’s quite interesting really,” Alistair explains. “Technology has moved forward a lot recently. You can cut single records in real time using a lathe-cut or dub plate system, but that takes a fair bit of skill and specialist equipment to get right.”

He pauses for a moment before continuing.

“The really interesting development is the new pressing plants. Those machines are serious bits of kit though - you’d be lucky to get much change from about £150,000.”

The shop also plays a quiet role in supporting Medway’s local music scene.

“Yes, we do events here,” he tells me. “Sometimes paid events with bands that already have a following, but we also invite local musicians in to jam. Supporting local bands and artists is really central to what we do. We stock a lot of releases by local talent.”

At the front of the store, in the wooden crates, is a healthy collection of records released by local bands. A firm reminder that Rochester’s music scene isn’t something distant or abstract but something being pressed, played and shared right here.

The shop itself has had its own journey too. Before opening Analogue Music, Alistair ran a record stall in the artisan market before settling into the current shop at 70a High Street.

“I liked this space,” he says simply, as he looks around and gestures out towards the street. “I love it. I’m doing what I love.”

With that, I drift back to a rack of vinyl records and find myself standing in front of a selection with a David Bowie release calling my name. I pull out the LP and ask if I can play it. Alistair gestures towards a listening corner where a turntable and headphones are set up for customers.

I slide the record from its sleeve and place it carefully onto the player. The needle lowers and the familiar warmth fills the headphones. The soft crackle that only vinyl seems to carry. I move the needle across a few points on the record, listening closely. It sounds good. Decision made.

At the counter another collector is deep in conversation with Alistair, the kind of effortlessly cool music enthusiast you often see in record shops: white beard, flicked hair, glasses, jeans. They’re discussing a particular album release and whether copies might be available.

Alistair reaches for a record and drops it onto the Technics deck set up in the corner. An old funk tune begins to play through the shop speakers and suddenly the whole room fills with its groove.

When my turn comes, I bring the Bowie record to the counter. Alistair slips it into a lightly padded brown bag printed with the shop’s name. Analogue Music.

“I bet you did that all by hand,” I say.

Alistair smiles.

“Hannah prints those,” he says. “She’s my partner and the one who designed and fitted out the shop.”

The other collector stands beside us waiting to pay, joining the light-hearted conversation, a neat little bundle of records tucked under his arm.

I step back out onto the High Street with my own purchase and a quiet smile. The kind that only comes from finding the exact record you didn’t know you were looking for.

Outside, Rochester High Street carries on as it always has. A slow mix of history, independent shops and small discoveries. Analogue Music feels perfectly at home among them.

In a world dominated by streaming and shuffle play, Analogue Music is a reminder of how good it feels to slow down, listen with intention, and fall back in love with the physical ritual of music. It’s the kind of place that anchors a community. Not loud or flashy, just quietly brilliant and a must-visit for anyone who believes the best stories are the ones tucked inside a record sleeve.