Shipping / Orders

Q: HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE YOU TO PACKAGE AND SEND MY ORDER?

A: We strive to ship all orders out as soon as possible, within 5 business days, but typically quicker.

If it has been more than 5 business days (weekends do not count as 'business days'), and you have not received any tracking information yet, click the link in your order confirmation email to check the status to see if it has updated since you last checked. Please be patient and only contact us asking for a status update after this 5 day timespan has elapsed. Thanks for your understanding!

Please note: We are still a very small company run by a single person plus one part time mail order staff!

NOTE: There are some occurrences when it may take longer to mail your items, especially if we have received a large volume of orders all at once during a new release period. If you need a status on our current order processing times, feel free to send us an email.

If you have an item marked "Pre-Order", your order will not ship until the date noted in the item description and/or until all items in your order are in hand at our HQ and ready to ship.

Q: HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE THE POSTAL SERVICE TO DELIVER MY ORDER ONCE IT HAS BEEN SENT?

Once shipped, most domestic orders take anywhere from 2 to 10 business days to arrive, depending on the efficiency of the postal service, the shipping option you selected, and your distance from the state of Maine. International shipping (including Canada) delivery times may vary between 2-12 weeks.

Q: DO YOU OFFER SHIPPING INSURANCE?

A: Yes, we now offer add-on shipping insurance for all packages, both domestic and international! Click here

USPS Ground Advantage, USPS Priority Mail, UPS, FedEx, and DHL options do include $100 of insurance by default. "Media Mail" is a 4th class economy service and does not include insurance. If you select the uninsured economy mail option and your package goes missing in transit, there is nothing we can do to help you if there is a problem. Once the boxes leave our hands and are taken by the Postal Service, we have no control over what happens from there. So, we strongly suggest to pay the small fee for peace of mind, knowing that if anything happens in transit you will be covered.

Q: CAN I TRACK MY ORDER? HOW DO I TRACK IT?

All packages are shipped with tracking included so you can keep track of where your package is and when to expect it.

Once your order ships you will automatically receive an email notification with the tracking number included. There will also be a link to your Order page, where all the order details will be visible, including your tracking info and receipt.

For even more detailed tracking information, we suggest using this site to get the best tracking results, which incorporates both domestic and international postal services/scans into one interface.

Q: I MADE A "PRE-ORDER" - WHEN ARE MY ITEMS SHIPPING?

Check the item description in your order closely - any that are pre-orders will give a quote of estimated shipping time - this quote is the time from the date you made your order.

If an item says "Pre-Order - shipping in 6 weeks" please only email us to ask for an update AFTER this period of time has elapsed. Note that the shipping estimate DOES NOT take into account how long it will take to reach you once we send it. For international customers, this can take up to another 2-8 weeks to reach you from the US, so please keep that in mind as well.

Q: I AM NOT SEEING ANY SHIPPING CONFIRMATION OR EMAILS COMING TO MY INBOX, WHATS GOING ON?

A: We always send email confirmations when orders are placed and also when orders are fulfilled, with tracking information included.

The number one reason for not seeing any confirmation emails is that you have multiple email addresses and your web browser auto-filled your checkout with one you do not use often. Please ensure to check all of your various email addresses to see if the emails have been sent there first before contacting us. (ie, do you have old email addresses from when you were younger, do you have work/school email addresses etc?)

Another reason you are not seeing any emails from us could be the result of a spelling error at checkout in your email address, or perhaps a mismatching domain was used such as "@gmail.com" instead of "@hotmail.com" etc.

Lastly, please check your "Spam", "Other" or "Promotions" tabs in your email client to see if our messages went there.

If you have exhausted all of the above and still need assistance please feel free to contact us with the name and address you used at checkout and we will be glad to look into this for you no problem.

Q: DO YOU OFFER UPS, FEDEX OR DHL FOR FASTER DELIVERY?

A: Yes we do, you will see all options with actual prices displayed at checkout. These services include insurance by default and some services require signature for delivery for extra protection.

Q: WHAT KIND OF PACKING MATERIALS DO YOU USE?

A: We use only high quality packing materials made in the USA or Canada to help items arrive in the same condition when they left our HQ.

Bubble Mailers: very sturdy, made with a golden kraft outer layer and an inside layer of bubble wrap, plus 1/2” fins on all 4 sides to help absorb shock in case it's dropped. Any items placed into a bubble mailer also is wrapped in cardboard and/or extra bubble wrap for further protection against damage in transit.

Tapes and CDs are shipped either in a bubble mailer or a small box with extra padding depending on the quantity of items in your order.

LP Mailers: We only use premium quality mailers for all LP orders, at no extra cost to you! These are top of the line quality, very sturdy, with extra padding around the sides and edges. This puts a 1" buffer between your record and the corner of the package = less damage and corner bumps in transit! We also add in extra bubble wrap and recycled 12" cardboard squares as much as possible to make it secure.

Poly Mailers: We use only high quality, thick, waterproof poly mailers for clothing items.

Q: CAN YOU TAKE THE LP OUT OF THE JACKET BEFORE SHIPPING MY VINYL? DO YOU SHIP RECORDS SEALED?

A: By default, all vinyl LPs are removed from their jackets before shipping. We do not send out records sealed, as we do not want your jackets to arrive ripped in half. Records can move around a bit while they are in transit, and shipping them 'assembled' can cause seam splits. This policy applies to all distro vinyl LPs as well as our own label releases - They are all removed from shrinkwrap and placed into a polybag with the vinyl behind the jacket before shipping.

Q: WHAT IF MY ORDER ARRIVES DAMAGED?

A: All items are packed well to ensure safe delivery and we're proud that less than 1% of packages we send have any issue in transit! However, as the mail handling from our destination to yours is out of our control, we cannot be held responsible for any damage / loss caused by the Postal Service during transit and/or theft of your parcel if you choose non-insured shipping options at checkout.

If you want potential protection against loss or damage please select Ground Advantage, Priority Mail, UPS, Fedex, DHL services which come with insurance of $100 included, and/or add Shipping Insurance to your order (add-on item). Economy Class (Media mail) does not include insurance by default.

We also now offer add-on shipping insurance for orders starting as low as $1.99. Please choose one of these options to ensure we can help you in case of any issues!

Items are packed with care as best as possible before being shipped - but we cannot 100% guarantee that your vinyl LPs will arrive in the same 'Mint' condition it was in when sent (especially if Media Mail is selected). We use top of the line LP mailers on all orders for best possible delivery and take as much care as possible in packaging. We are unable to give any refunds or credits if your LP jacket arrives in non-Mint condition or has minor corner bumps due to Postal Service handling, however. Minor wear such as corner bumps/dings do not qualify for an insurance claim and will not be honored.

Q: THERE WAS A MISTAKE IN MY ORDER WHEN I RECEIVED IT, WHAT SHOULD I DO?

Unfortunately, we are human and mistakes happen once in a while. However, you can rest assured that we will always fix any problems and want you to be happy with your order. If you happen to receive a wrong item or wrong size, please send us an email and we will get this taken care for you as soon as possible. Thanks for your understanding!

Q: WHAT IF MY ORDER SAYS 'DELIVERED' BUT I DO NOT FIND IT AT MY ADDRESS?

Once the shipping carrier you selected marks a package as 'delivered', the ability of the sender (us) to assist in this matter is very limited. Your first steps you should take are to get in contact with your local delivery agency/post office to inquire where the package was left at your residence. We also suggest to check all possible delivery areas of your residence/business and check with your delivery person.

Please note there are rare occurrences when a delivery service will mark a package as "delivered" but then it will not actually be dropped off at your residence until 24 hours later. This is confusing for everyone, but seems to happen sometimes!

For more assistance with situations like this:

USPS: https://faq.usps.com/s/article/Where-is-my-package

UPS: Call 1-800-PICK-UPS.

Please note that If you did not choose a delivery service that includes Insurance, or additional shipping insurance (add-on item) our ability to help you is very limited.

Q: WILL I GET ANY FREE STUFF WITH MY ORDER? STICKERS, ETC?

A: Yes! You'll always get at least one free sticker with any order, and we also try to throw some other random stuff in for you as well like flyers and trading cards.

Q: CAN I RESERVE INCOMING DISTRO TITLES IN ADVANCE?

A: No. Everything is on a first come first serve basis.

Q: CAN I BUY STUFF SOLELY FOR THE PURPOSE OF RELISTING ('FLIPPING') FOR HIGHER PRICES ON DISCOGS / EBAY?

A: Please don't do this. We try to provide fair prices on our offerings, intended for actual fans and collectors of the music, not those persons buying items just to jack up the price to make a quick buck at our expense on the second hand market.

You will be banned from ordering in the future if we suspect such blatant action on your part. This includes trying to circumvent any "limit of 1 per person" rules by having associates/friends/family members order duplicate items on your behalf.

Q: WHAT ARE YOUR EXACT SHIPPING COSTS?

A: We use a weight based tiered shipping calculation system, based on actual USPS, UPS and DHL rates. You will see accurate rates reflected in the shopping cart once you add your desired items to the cart.

Weight Tiers:

up to 4oz - 1 CD or 1 cassette, 1-4 enamel pins

up to 8oz - 1 to 3 digipak CDs or cassettes, 1-2 jewel case CDs, 1 hat

8oz to 2lbs - 1 vinyl record, 4-12 digipak CDs or cassettes, 4-8 jewel case CDs

3lbs to 4lbs - 2-3 vinyl records, 13-24 digipak CDs or cassettes, 9-16 jewel case CDs

3lbs to 4lbs 4-5 vinyl records, 25+ cassettes or digipak CDs, 17+ jewel case CDs, etc

Example: 2.01 lbs of items are the same shipping price as 2.99lbs of items. The price will not increase until you cross the 3lb tier threshold. Then, 3.01 lb is the same price as 3.99 lbs, etc. You can keep adding items to your cart until you see the price raise, then you know you have went over to the next price/weight tier.

AVERAGE ITEM WEIGHT

Tape 2.5 oz

CD jewel case = 4oz

CD digipak (single) 2.5oz

Vinyl LP 16 oz

2xVinyl LP 20oz

Q: DO YOU ACCEPT ORDERS PLACED OUTSIDE THE US?

A: Yes we do, with the exception of a few countries.

Q: HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE THE POSTAL SERVICE TO DELIVER MY INTERNATIONAL ORDER ONCE ITS BEEN SENT?

A: International shipping (including Canada) delivery times may vary between 2-12 weeks.

Q: WILL I HAVE TO PAY IMPORT TAX / DUTIES WHEN THE PACKAGE ARRIVES TO MY COUNTRY FROM THE USA?

A: Unfortunately we have no way of knowing how/when/if your country decides to charge you taxes as it varies country by country and seems to be arbitrary. We try to minimize the likelihood of this happening to you, but if your country does decide to demand payment for delivery, it is your responsibility as the importer of the goods to pay any taxes due.

If you refuse to pay the import duties/tax requested and the package is Returned to us, you will forfeit your shipping cost paid as 'Refused to Pay' will be cited as the reason for return. This is non-negotiable and any messages dealing with paying your customs taxes will be referred to this paragraph.

Q: IS THERE ANY WAY TO PAY LESS FOR SHIPPING/TAXES IF I LIVE OUTSIDE THE USA?

A: Check out Our Distributors.