Frequently Asked Questions

There’s (often) a reason for what we do and why we do it, so here are some of the most common questions we encounter around releases.

Why does it cost so much to ship my record from the USA?

Without a doubt the number-one question we get (and rightly so), and we put together an entire article on it here. In summary, it’s expensive to ship globally from the USA and we often find ourselves eating a portion of the cost, so please, don’t get too mad at us.

Will you repress any of the releases?

Overall, all our releases are one-off limited editions, and if any are repressed, we will make it unique. We see scalpers on Discogs all the time, unfortunately, and we do our best to stop it by staggering launches and blocking anyone buying multiple copies. But that doesn’t mean we can sit on hundreds of records going unsold for everyone who might one day want one. Choosing a number to manufacture is always an unknown, and because we are a small label, we have to err on the side of caution. It’s extremely hard to break even if a record does well, let alone if if doesn’t sell out completely. If we press too many, it could stop us financially from doing any more in the future. We also work with artists who may have never had a record out before, so gauging demand is hard. Certain releases may get repressed, but it’s dependent on a lot of factors that go on behind the scenes between us and the artist.

Will you offer a subscription service so we don’t miss out on vinyl releases?

We often get asked about this because some of our releases can sell out quickly and people don’t want to miss out. A lovely problem to have. It’s something we are considering, but right now we haven’t found the perfect platform to do it. Ultimately, this might be something we have to build out ourselves, which will require time and money. So, maybe one day. However, we have recently launched a subscription for our streaming service, 9128.live.

Why do you offer a pre-order for it to often quickly sell-out?

Sometimes we will only put a limited amount of vinyl up for preorder.

A preorder helps us in a couple of ways, and ultimately, it’s in place primarily to help you. If we press 500 copies we will normally offer 100 up for preorder and then follow with the remainder upon release day:

1) It helps us gauge demand so we know how many copies to sell direct on Bandcamp or shift to stores and distributors.

2) It gives people who are willing to buy on sight the chance to secure their copy first. If you follow us on Bandcamp or subscribe to our newsletter you’re always the first to know of a release and I see the same people buying on preorder, so it’s possible to not miss them!

3) It gives people who might have missed out on pre-order, a second chance to buy on actual release day. We always hold copies back for actual release day, and that’s also when our stores and distributor go live with their copies (like Juno). So if you miss out on pre-order copies, hold tight until release day. Bandcamp may say SOLD OUT but it really should say, “PREORDER COPIES SOLD OUT, COME BACK ON RELEASE DAY”…

We don’t put all copies up to buy in one go, because people always miss out. This way, you have at least two windows to (Preorder and Release) to secure a copy. After that, our stores often follow with availability as records start to land.

Why don’t you just press more copies?

As mentioned already, getting the number right is not a science. Vinyl is not made with the flick of a switch. It can take us over a year to put out one record. For us to decide to make more than the first press or a repress, and in order for it to be cost-efficient, we would need to do another 500, and that then opens us up to even more risk if we don’t sell them all (you can’t just repress another 50 copies).

If we decide to press, for example, 1000 copies next time, for a release and we only sell half that, we are left with mountains of vinyl that go unsold, and eventually if it never sells, plastic waste that is extremely hard to recycle (which has happened).

Lastly, a reminder that we are not a big corporate label with offices and storage. And distributors don’t like to hold on to records for long taking up space on shelves.

Why don’t you offer CD’s for sale too?

For some releases, we do.

We love and focus on the vinyl format, and CD’s right now are too much for us to logistically handle. So we focus our efforts on vinyl and do it as best as we can.

When we do offer CD’s, they are often included with a vinyl purchase. And if we do a CD it’s because it offers something a little different - like an entire mixed album (ASIPV015), or versions of the main album (ASIPV013).

We have also created limited wooden editions of some of our compilations (ASIPV001, ASIPV002 and ASIPV00X) but these are rare and mean’t as collectors pieces.

Why do you always press color vinyl?

We put music and presentation on an equal playing field with regards to vinyl. It’s meant to be coveted, held and treated like an art piece, on first look and up to the last groove. This often means we use colored vinyl to add to the overall presentation. In my personal opinion pressing records, the difference in quality between a well mastered, prepared and pressed black and a color record is negligible, and if you want an uninterrupted HQ listening version, we always offer a HQ download (Flac, Wav, aiff etc) through Bandcamp and with all vinyl purchases for free. We don’t make you pay for it twice.

Why don’t you always offer a black vinyl version?

We won’t get into the vinyl quality conversation, but let’s just say, we offer black versions if 1) the artist specifically requests it or 2) the record is more ‘DJ’ oriented - as it’s harder to find grooves on colored records or lastly, 3) black vinyl suits the overall art or aesthetic or the record.

Do you accept demos for the label?

We do and I would never not encourage people to send through their music (because I love listening to new music). However, we are increasingly becoming more backed-up with our release schedule because we focus on vinyl. It only takes one delay to push things back like dominos. So, if you are preparing a demo - a piece of advice in general - understand that some labels need at least one year in order to get something on the calendar, often even longer. A few more tips on sending demos can be found in this article.

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Want to know something else? Drop us an email.