The Ex-Hipster Behind Substack’s Elite Tastemakers

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January 28, 2026

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editor@creativeunderworld.com

A few years ago, Chris Black reached out to Max Stein, whom he’d come across years earlier when Stein was a downtown scenester and self-described “loyal devotee of the late-era Beatrice Inn.” In the intervening period, Stein had refashioned himself as a manager for a certain kind of multi-hyphena… More »