Ya know, it's tough b/c I like to support indie labels. I like to believe that mailordering records puts more money in the pockets of said indie labels, labels like Drag City. The only problem is, I order a record on or near its release date and 3 weeks goes by and still...no record.

Dischord used to be like this years ago, but they are much better about expediting your shipment. I don't feel like I'm "that guy" who complains after 4 days. I've been waiting for 3 full weeks now for the damn rock and nothing.

So...the question is, why the hell should you buy direct from a label when you can have it immediately for 2 bucks more at the record store? Indie labels are businesses too, so there should be a level of customer satisfaction that they're invested in if they're going to offer a mailorder "service" to their fans/customers.

Does anyone else go through this with mailordering records?

As far as I'm concerned go buy it from the local record shop. That way you're supporting both the label and your local business'. It's win win.

This, however, may not be the best venue to complain about specific incidents like what you've experienced. You're best off dealing with the label directly.

i actually had that same experience with drag city. it took 28 days to get a record from them. after some email was exchanged with the shipping clerk i did not feel any better and by the time the record arrived i was so pissed i barely wanted it anymore. the clerk told me it could take up to 4 weeks. FOUR WEEKS. are they making this CD special for me?

ugh. 28 days to ship a record 6 miles. i should have just driven there and taken it off the shelf myself.

-dah.

Damned indie-rock slackers. I've actually had better experiences than these ordering from a record store in San Francisco (Aquarius, if you're curious) and having the records shipped across the country to Baltimore. This is pretty inexcusable.

How did you have Drag City ship your record? Did you pay additional for shipping? If not, it was probably shipped Media (4th class) Mail. Media Mail sucks. I have recieved packages within a week, as well as waited close to a month. There seem to be no rules regarding this method of shipping.

It's a scheme they have, these Drag City people.

They take your money and move it around while you wait for your record -- smart run-and-gun international investments, currency trading, etc. By the time you receive your record, they've turned your $12 into $30. And the slacker in charge of mailing out your order is an intern, and works for free.

My roommate has actually sworn off drag city mailorder for life. He ordered a record and after a month it still didn't come. He sent a few emails and finally after a while they found the order.

DC apologized and said they would throw in some extras for their unprofessionalism.

Just shy of three months his vinyl showed up...with no extras.

I'm personally pretty chill and am fine with waiting because I have no other choice. I'm a vinyl geek and I don't live in a big city. One local record store deals mostly with older vinyl and the other deals mostly with electronic/house/DJ vinyl. So I can't just walk in anywhere and pick up US Maple or the new Bonnie Prince Billy on vinyl.

I've only mailordered from Drag City once, but I didn't have any problems. Maybe I was lucky, I don't know. They set me up with plenty of Neil Hamburger within a couple of weeks.

Hopefully the nearby record stores will stock that upcoming Bastro reissue, though.