Why are record store employees so cynical?

Once the initial thrill of 'working w/ something you love' wears off, you are left w/ the usual hell of ALL retail work - TERRIBLE wages/conditions/hours, shit from management and customers, the sheer horror and stupidity of selling/making profit from non-essential gds and services. It can't help but turn you into a misanthropic fuck with an especially well-tuned creep/moron/thief/timewaster/pervert detector: you forget all the nice cool customers who are no hassle, 'cos you're too busy worrying abt the next arsehole/idiot/psycho to stroll through the door - rec shops, like comic shops, bkshops, video shops etc. - are always always magnets for villains and nutters. What's worse is that it can make you hate the very thing you thought you loved - in retail, it's never ever "all about the music", it's abt profit and exploitation and market forces and all that other soul-wearying bullshit. Hipness and sarcasm and customer contempt are just weapons and shields against psychical and psychic grief.

This isn't to excuse unwarranted rudeness, or ho-hum trendy sneering - personally, I don't care what the fuck the customers spend THEIR money, just as long as I don't have to listen to it. I'm sure that alongside all the terrible rip-off retail encounters, we can all also remember instances of good service, a friendly person behind the counter, an enthusiast who went to the effort of you tracking down that sought-after disc, who turned you on to something new and fine, who opened yr ears, who admired and encouraged yr purchasing power.

Only by shoplifting (ie becoming a cynic myself) could I even up and correct this inauthentic relationship. That would also remove the uncomfortable ambiguity in my relationship with the employees. Instead of pretending to be my friends while secretly judging and categorising me, they would reveal their true colours by shouting 'Freeze! Put your hands on the counter! Pete, call the police!'

However, some guys at the 60's record shop were really rude to me when I asked them if they knew if Todd Rundgren did any songs w/ Female vocalists, cause I heard a song and was told it was Todd Rundgren. He says to me in a snarky voice, "it would help if you knew what the song title was." To which I replied, "Well, I didn't think it would hurt to ask, as I thought you might be an expert -- is there any harm in that!?!" And then he said, "uh, no I guess not".
I never minded when people asked me questions!

Ha - I know the guy you're talking about. That description is spot on. It seems like pretty much all the people who work at that store have vast, untapped reservoirs of disdain.

Brilliance.

I've only set foot in an indie record store once since. It was too scarring.

Hunchbacked, uber-cool, implicitly sneery, visually very impressive.

Sounds like Chris Lechter is back in New York City. He sort of looks like that faux-Baudelaire dude in Red Meat comics, right?

I tried to make as little eye contact as possible as she rang up the Cars and Van Halen LPs I'd picked out.

FROM DOWNTOWN!

< /MarvAlbert>

Lord, Ally, now you got me started!

Listen, we should stop making fun of him, he's a very nice man and a good, quiet neighbor. I love living next to Marv Albert, unlike Regis who almost stepped on my foot once, old bastard.

Dealing with shitty employees made me as crabby as irritating customers.

"Can I have more hours? I need more money."

(hours given)

"Oh, I have to work next Saturday? But there's a party Friday and..."

(hours taken away)

"This job doesn't pay me shit."

(hours given back)

"Oh, Thursday nights aren't very good..."

Erick H knows what I'm talking about.

me, "nah, i missed it."

clerk a, "insane. hey clerk b, you like hella?"

clerk b, "nah. they're wanky. all their records are crap."

all i could do was nod. glad i'm spending $7 on a record that sucks. i got to hear once again how hella is no lightning bolt and how they're wanky despite their fastness. of course, then i got to hear how another cd i got was amazing. i suppose that's how it works. they can wreck on your purchases as long as they compliment your selections enough that you come out on the positive side dollar-wise.

in the guys defense, he's been pretty nice to me on other occasions. perhaps they were making an afternoon of it?
m.

Or what Stence said.

Tom Millar can be that Tom Tolbert Ferengi-lookin' guy.

I'll be Ahmad Rashad < /pipedream >

Dave, I take it you've seen that men's haircolor product commercial with Walt "Clyde" Frazier and "I'm" Keith Hernandez? Shit makes me crack up almost as much as the Redman/Method Man "These Guys Are Odor" ad.

These are the elements of humiliation that forced my resignation from Mondo Kim's. Of course some people have it worse -- right before I left they hired a guy who was to start at $6 an hour, and when he showed up he was told he'd only be making $5 an hour. BELOW MINIMUM WAGE. jesus christ, and he TOOK the job!

Ok, pretend I didn't just announce that I have a theory that the NBA on NBC is modelled after Star Wars.

And, really, if hstencil was making a legit pass and striving for true "rowr" factor, he'd go w/ the Ally :: Summer Sanders comparison.

WARNING: PERTINENT THREAD CONTENT BELOW

The one time I remember having a somewhat legitimate conversation with a record clerk (circa 1995?), I asked him to snag a copy of Shellac's _At Action Park_ that had been perched behind the register since who-knows-when. He asked me what they sounded like, and I said something along the lines of "um...well...um..." and ended up regurtigating some horseshit from the Spin Alt. Guide, and he (rightfully) gave me the time-honored "um...yeah" look of disdain / confusion / fear. I avoid dealing w/ clerks nowadays, just because I like being self-sufficient and wandering aimlessly, tho there is a wee bit of the intimidation factor involved - I don't wanna poke grumpy retail bears with stupid "do you have any Os Mutantes" sticks, especially if they're mired in the sort of 9th-circle shit Doug describes.

Beckett couldn't have written it better.

The boys were all masturbating over some Miami Vice DVD or something like that

I had nothing to do with that.

now all we need is a lispy guy to play Bill Walton (haha, Ned?)

My voice is different. ;-)

I feel really awkward in shops. It's something to do with annoucing myself as who I am by my choices and being judged by a stranger

is true.

The corollary is that having the cute girl (or cute boy, take your pick) at the cash register say, "Oh, great CD!" can give a temporary zing of validation and accomplishment way out of proportion to reason or rhyme. I suppose there's a Nick Hornby character in there somewhere, the guy who keeps buying things trying to get the approval of the store clerk.

x-post ILM

Found that Queen Anne Easy Street has the best used area, so that gets visited often, but I try to split the love between them and the Ballard / Fremont Sonic Booms. Crush-worthy, friendly Fremont Sonic Boom staff, in particular. Plus, they're music *fans*, on top of being clerks - always ready with the "what's playing now?" answer or the willingness to order an out-of-stock item. Particular affection to the Fremont Sonic Boom for having Notwist items, pre-_Neon Golden_. Good in-store shows, too.

you tell us DB!

Clerk: "GOD HELP ME!"

I think Other Music gets a bad rap. I've been going there since the late 90s (though not so much anymore), and I've always found that most of the employees there to be friendly and helpful.

dixons?

i wonder what it takes to be staff at rough trade. i certainly always walk out of there with records i certainly cannot afford. but when i've been round the other end of the shop from the counter and mentioned to a friend the record on was pretty cool, they've heard and told me.

Aw, you just caught Craig on a bad day. I'll make sure to tell him to lighten up.

And they put those little thumbnail reviews on post-it notes on their favourites, and I always look forward to their year-end lists (overall and by genre).

Lovely.

nah, cd discounts. i mean, i shouldn't complain, i've got many a decent bargain there, but the dude is one of the least likeable people i've ever encountered.

And a record store -- whether you work it or shop it -- is a living breathing reminder that your symbols are outnumbered and outgunned. Unfortunately, that's why I'm motivated to read and listen to more than I can possibly digest...the more symbols I surround myself with, the richer my life will be. Sure, it's all a sham, but it's one I can dance to.

Now that I have a real job and my record store stuff is just a hobby, working there is fun and almost liberating...I really CAN tell people my views and shelve the retail persona to an extent and not have to worry about being fired or selling some discs so I can eat. Things may still go wrong, but I'm much calmer about them.

-- Erick H (eshaigh...) (webmail), April 23rd, 2003. (Erick H)

What a great post.

Just for that, I decided to add a copy of Mississippi: The Album to my stack. I told her "good luck with your ball pit" on the way out the door. I probably should have called her an idiot cracker, but it's the only place I can buy vinyl during the bus strike.

i am working at the store right now. three people in a row called to confirm that the cds that they ordered were in, which wouldnt be bad if it werent for the fact that we had already called them to say the cds were in: "hi i am calling to say that i got your call saying my cd is in. is my cd in?". i will prob get another million like this tonight.