Declare the correct value on the Customs form?

Lots of holier-than-thou people assuming that someone is cheating here and ignoring the fact that noting is being imported so no duty is due.

My holier-than-thou assumption is you're out 1200 bucks.

Sorry but hope you can afford the loss. 

@OP Did you pay duties on receipt of the album and if so, did the seller declare the full value, i.e the price you were paying them, when they exported the goods to the US?

let me add a different perspective, with a European brain (Eastern European, even worse)

We deal with taxes and customs and fees every day. It's a nightmare. A price tag of X really means 3X at the end. It's pretty normal to be "lean" every possible way and use standard low numbers when declaring value. It can totally NOT be a red flag, just routinely avoiding getting screwed. Many times, customs doesn't care if it's an item returned back to its origins. They are trained to screw you. They have quotas. I could write a book about my stories sitting in their offices with my beaten up laptop as they claimed I was trying to sneak it into the country and sell it. 

On the other hand, $1200 for a record, not as described IS a red flag.