New music and skate shop Spin and Grind opens in Seoul’s Sinchon

Spin and Grind, a new music and skate shop, pulled off the loudest, hardest soft open in the history of soft opens in western Seoul’s Sinchon area on Feb. 15. Following a vinyl record fair organized by Record Threat, four bands played the heaviest music that could be heard anywhere in Korea that night.

Tables and racks were moved aside and drums were brought in, transforming the tiny second-floor store temporarily into a hardcore punk venue. Desecrate, a hardcore band from Montreal, headlined the show for the final stop on their Asia tour, joined by local acts Palecistus, Second Damage and Cutt Deep.

“The space is very small for a band performance, but I thought it would be possible,” said Victor Ha, the shop owner. “One of my favorite shelves was damaged, but as the first hardcore show in the new space, I couldn’t have asked for more — it was completely satisfying.”

Only 20 tickets were available, and those who didn’t get one either had to go home or stand out front. Counting musicians, up to about 40 people crammed into the small space. Between the racks of LPs, skateboard decks and kendamas, there was a frenzy of moshing, two-stepping, and even stage diving and crowd surfing.

Canadian hardcore band Desecrate performs during a soft opening event for Spin and Grind in western Seoul’s Sinchon area, Feb. 15. Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar

It was a legendary start for Ha’s latest endeavor. Spin and Grind, as the name implies, focuses mainly on vinyl records and skateboard equipment, but a lot more is available, including kendamas, local zines, band shirts and various other merch.

Out of view was a button-making machine that he uses for a project he calls Button King, through which he has helped accessorize the country’s underground music scene for years. Ha said he often receives massive orders for thousands of customized pins, but he also has good deals for his friends’ bands looking to offer their own merch.

Spin and Grind is the successor to his previous store, Look Beyond, which was located in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, until it closed last month.

“Cheonan didn’t have enough demand to sustain a space centered on skate culture, record culture and live shows — especially hardcore and punk,” Ha said. “I knew that eventually I would have to move to Seoul, but it took the right timing and the determination to make it happen.”

He explained that before Look Beyond was a shop, it was a way to promote live music events.

“In a way, you could say it’s the evolution of a personal project,” he said. “Look Beyond will now continue as a clothing brand based on indie music and skate culture, and you can understand Spin and Grind as a concept store directly operated by the Look Beyond brand.”

The new store isn’t all that different from the other one, except this one will hopefully be more convenient for a lot more customers. It’s a five-minute walk from Baby Doll, which is probably the country’s best DIY, artist-owned live music venue, and about three minutes away from a local skateboarding street spot.

“People say Sinchon isn’t what it used to be, but I believe that for my main targets — skateboarding and live music — this is actually the hottest moment,” Ha said. “For the kind of shop I want to run, I think this is the best location in Korea.”

A young Korean crowdsurfs while Canadian hardcore band Desecrate performs during a soft opening event for Spin and Grind in western Seoul’s Sinchon area, Feb. 15. Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar

He added that, despite the chaos around putting on a full hardcore show right in his shop, he would like to continue hosting live music there.

“Hardcore shows aren’t easy to host, to be honest, but I’d still like to try doing them again,” he said. “First, I’d like to put on something with a Tiny Desk Concert kind of vibe, and I’m also planning to organize album release showcases for bands and live DJ sets. I also want to hold skateboarding-related events, flea markets, exhibitions by indie artists and pop-ups.”

Spin and Grind, a new music store and skateboard shop in western Seoul’s Sinchon area, is filled with activity during a soft open event on Feb. 15. Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar

Ha, in his late 40s now and a father of three daughters, is also known as the frontman of the local hardcore band Things We Say, founded in 2004. Their last show was Rampage Fest on Nov. 22, 2025, headlined by Australian hardcore punk band Speed.

“All the members have jobs, and some have families as well, so we can’t aggressively play a lot of shows,” Ha admitted. “We plan to continue steadily at our own pace, in our own way. We’re planning to start performing again in May, and over the course of this year, we’d also like to work on some new songs.”

The shop has been operational ever since the Feb. 15 show and is aiming for a full opening this Saturday. For the occasion — and in commemoration of that wild soft opening night — Ha is selling shirts with the slogan, “Trash the pit, not the store.”

Spin and Grind is open Tuesday to Friday from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturday to Sunday from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Visit @spinandgrind on Instagram for more information.