Digger’s Diary: An inside look at two lifelong record collectors, Lu Dur and Vee Reyes
Digger’s Diary: An inside look at two lifelong record collectors, Lu Dur and Vee Reyes
February 07, 2020
Vee Reyes & Luciano Duran, also known as Dyatron Industries, are passionate vinyl collectors & DJs living in San Francisco. Their collection includes almost 35,000 records, specializing in Italo Disco, Electro, & many other styles such as Hip Hop & Dark-wave Rave.
Vee Reyes on the left, Lu Dur on the right.
How many records do you currently own?
Lu: 30,000
Vee: I think I have about 4,000.
Check out Dyatron Industries collection on Discogs!
How do you remember what you already have in your collection? How do you organize them? Genre? Year? Artist?
Lu: I remember what I have by engaging daily with the collection, even when I’m away it is constantly on my mind. I organize them by genre and then go into subdivisions. Some go into artist sections specially if they require it, for example, in my case Kraftwerk needs its own section.
[However] there are lots of issues. Should I add this certain item? Should I remove that certain item? Can this item [replace] something else? Should I get a fourth copy of this one thing?
Vee: By Genres, Label, and Artist.
What tools do you use to organize? Stickers? Dividers? Signs?
Lu: I use shelves to function as dividers but not much else, the space itself is utilized as an organizational tool.
Vee: I just designate specific cubicles on the shelves.
Does your organization process change with the number of records you collect? If so, How?
Lu: Yes, genres fracture, reemerge, contract, or expand, as do my own tastes with the times. All those things are constantly reconfiguring my collection, for example my "abstract" section grew to include what I see as unrelated, but connected genres such as trap & grime for instance.
Vee: My organization process is consistent even when my collection keeps growing.
Why do you organize your collection in a certain way?
Lu: I organize the collection in a way that functions as a map, there are constant calculations that make certain items move around in the landscape. I have a quick way to find what I’m seeking by heading to that specific area in the shelves.
Did you inherit any records? Did they come with a memorable story?
Lu: In most cases, a record will literally "record" a moment in my life, very dense abstract "data", a mixture of sense information of when I got it, why I got it, where I got it, what was going on in my life when I got it, what was going on in the world, even dreams fears & things that I was even unaware of until later!
METACOGNITION. When I revisit the record those things flood back instantly when wanted like an instant information download. It gets even more interesting when you start mixing them with other records because each one brings this data exchange, and THEN, it intermingles with other humans beings or things that are around you too, and their "data " also gets co-mingled through the music experience! I think this is the very raw, primitive shamanic quality that many artists, collectors, and DJs cherish.
Have you thought about the longevity of your collection? What should happen to your records when you are gone from this earth?
Lu: I would like to leave it to those I love, my partner Veronica who happens to love the records, my brothers in my family, and selected buddies! BUT no one get any ideas now to get rid of me! Let nature do me in!
Vee: I will pass them on to my loved ones and friends.
How do you relate to music in digital format vs physical formats?
Lu: I certainly enjoy digital on the go as [much as] everyone else, but when it comes to collecting and DJing, and when at home or performing, it’s strictly vinyl for me. Mainly because that is how I started collecting and also because I like the ability to do things without too much mediation.
Vee: I prefer physical format. I like to feel a record, see the cover and the record art. I [also] prefer analog vs digital sound.
Do you also collect CD's? If so, how many do you have and how do you feel about those?
Lu: I actually never really got into CD’s. When CD’s first emerged I was already collecting vinyl, so I did not want to restart in a new format. I decided even back then to just stick to one format.
Vee: I don't really buy CD's much, but I've kept some of the ones I've had over the years. I still have a box with about 300 CD's.
Tell us a story of how you found a record you always wanted and why that record captured your fascination.
Lu: I must admit that I am very determined to find new music and to acquire said music in physical format. I am not a very materialistic person per se, I don't care about status-symbols, social-clout, fancy-cars & things like that at all; but one thing I do care ALOT about is having music I LIKE. At heart I am a bit of a cultural heretic, even when in relation to underground music. Music is non-physical in nature, but for me to have access to that non-physical part of it, with the UPMOST security I think it is necessary to know I have it. [This] requires me seeking out & keeping the physical format of it, hence the vinyls. I think I can say I actively seek, find, get, & enjoy music on a daily basis - which is kinda crazy, but it is something I do without hesitation. This very intense obsession helps keep me sane, thank you very much. As far as style, I think I like very raw, independent, honest expression in the music, so I much prefer say a person that might have not the best voice, technical skills, fancy production, or sexy looks; but someone that has that honest song. I like that more than shiny glossy hype productions in general. This attitude permeates everything I’m into from hiphop to techno, [I] just need that emotional link or its just something "out there for others but not for me".
Vee: I find the records or the records find me. When I'm at a record store, sometimes just by liking the cover art, I get to discover an amazing record that I've never heard of before. I also enjoy visiting neighborhood record shops, and sell/swap events. It's so much fun - like going treasure hunting, and you get to meet cool people there too.
Why do you collect records and how does that inform what you dig for? Are you a DJ looking for dance records? An audiophile music fan? A buyer/seller? A pure collector who collects for historical merit?
Lu: I do all of the above. Although I never want to make people dance necessarily per se, I DO want to play music I find interesting that excites the hell out of me & hopefully others too. My feeling is, hey, maybe others will get this feeling I get from this too. It’s like a scientific discovery of a new sensation that I want to share with others. I don't follow proven floor-fillers from others because it works for them. I have to FEEL that connection to it first or otherwise its just not relevant to me. I enjoy the element of discovery, of things unknown; you kinda have to be very obsessive to dig & find such things, but I've done it all my life without being able to stop myself, ITS NOT A CHOICE! So hopefully someone out there can sometimes appreciate it besides me. I do buy, sell, speculate dig, and haggle. I'm into the historical merit of it all, I enjoy the cultural aspects of it; and I also enjoy the personal rationale behind the whole activity of DJing. DJing is super fun because you then get to connect things like a scientist. The main reason for me, in the end, is that it’s like a living conversation between me & the collection, like a chess game with a non human intelligence, because the collection is an amalgamation of dreams, fears, joy, technical-expertise, talent, concepts, style, technologies-used, etc… from various people, from various eras, from various states of mind, from various parts of the world, selected by me for specific reasons, to help me feel certain things when I need to dive into that "abstract information interchange thing". I think the key lies in how personal it is to you, how you interpret the "data" you get from it, and perhaps how you re willing to share that with others.
Vee: I'm a big music nerd, so I am always looking for music and buying records I like. I just buy music to please myself and my moods, not really to gain popularity as a DJ. Even if an artist or a style is popular or the trend; if I don't like it, I won't play it just to appease the masses.
What has influenced record collectors to seek out records in eras like the 80’s, 90’s, 00’s, and present? Does nostalgia play a role in your record collecting? What is different or not different about collecting contemporary records versus decades-old records?
Lu: All of the above, there are certain items that have incalculable nostalgic power, and certain eras produced things that could only have been made at that time, there is a certain magic that gets captured in music. New productions also have this of course; there are amazing works from the past & from the present. Ultimately I think it’s how something resonates with you, the person has to honestly "face the music". Recognize if it really touches you or not, regardless of hype! Every era has a unique perspective to offer, the 70’s, 80’s & 90’s were eras that had incredible "experimenta[l] creativity" in music. [The] 2000’s & 2010 's to me are an expansion of things from [the] 70’s, 80’s, 90’s, and I think [the] 60's & before were [like] building scaffolding to what exploded in the 70's, 80’s, [and] 90’s. I personally believe we as humans want to go into "greater spectrum ability existence", personally I think in essence what occurred in the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s in music is incredible in this regard. As humans our goal is to learn and be inspired by it without simply using it to make money or gain popularity. I know there are endless debates about how this new age of "capitalism savage" is cannibalizing everything that's been created, I think we need to respectfully-mindfully love all things without exploiting them for selfish reasons; mainstream culture tends to rip-off cool things & make it lame cause they are obviously out to make a quick buck without any understanding of the context of what made that style cool in the first place. I will say that we need artists & djs to have a spectrum, same with labels; what I mean is we cant have all of them be sexy famous rich extroverts throwing cakes at stadium crowds, because that type of human will make a certain type of music that someone that stays at home avoiding all people, reading Lovecraft & Jung, off the grid, straight-edge, drinking coffee at long nights with an analog synth recording to a cassette, singing about how he or she can not relate the outside world party people. One is not better than the other there just needs to be a spectrum of people, right now post internet things are becoming too homogenized, everyone has to be lockstep into this one way of being, I think it doesn't hurt to have more of a spectrum that's all.
Vee: I think record collectors seek out these records from the past because they have monetary and sentimental value. I lived through those era's so nostalgia does play a role in my record collecting. There was a big explosion of amazing electronic music styles from those eras, but it is also exciting to hear new stuff; artists I've never heard before that have influences of the past.
What are you collecting/interested in right now and why? Genres, formats, labels, artists, etc…
Lu: Format, for me still strictly vinyl, as it’s been from the start. Main genres remain same as they have been all along for me for the most part, with some additions, of course, as new genres do pop up here and there that demand my attention after serious examination! Electro, Italo, & Synthpop are the main gigantic sections of my collection since those genres originated to present, I don't intend to keep such a close eye on them; keeping up with all the twists & turns as if they were an ongoing tv drama. Non-maintream hip hop, minimal wave, ambient, brain dance, industrial, rave, soundtracks, leftfield, ebm, acid, 70's AM gold rock, techno, house, newbeat, darkwave, & others. I have some odd weird sub-collections as well, like Futuristic-Hybrid-Traditional-Mexican-Music/Post Tribal era, and Japanese 60s & 70's science fiction live action super heroes records, as well as a collection of science fiction horror themed records that cover everything from Godzilla, Quatermass, They Live, Dr Who, to Zombie Giallo movies; lots of weird unofficial edits remixes & experiments.
Some of my favorite artists have gone into a weird post-everything industrial goth folk thing, I kinda resonate with that; Zusammen label is one of my favorites lately.
Vee: I've always been into mainly collecting vinyls of electronic music from the 80's 90's, new and old school electro, freestyle, italo, synth wave (cold, dark, new, minimal), goth, 70's, 80's, 90's rock/pop, post punk, ambient, industrial, ebm, new beat, jungle, dnb, rave, breakbeat, intelligent techno, detroit, acid, early house, rap, hiphop...it's what I collect mostly. But I really like all kinds of genres including soul, disco, big band era of the 40's, 50's, & 60's, contemporary classical, movie sound tracks, etc… Music can teach you a lot, and having a wide variety of styles never bores - it only gets you more involved in the history of music.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity
Edited by Brennan Ko and Dundee Maghen
Photos courtesy of Dyatron Industries
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