Super Asbestos Records
Super Asbestos was Jim Zespy's baby, a studio and record label. Super Asbestos recorded and released a number of records for local and not-so-local bands in a converted building in a rather industrial area of Fargo. Jim left Fargo via Indiana and is currently in Chicago, running Essay Records (or SA records).
Super Asbestos Records and Studios were both overly ambitious projects meant to feed each other. We could give our friends good, at least passable recordings doing it ourselves. Then release those recordings, tour and take ourselves all over the world! Jarod and I learned together how to record bands, becoming pretty good engineers in the process. The early records where fun as hell, so exiting and such a fun time. It was amazing; I haven’t felt that same energy, or comraderie since then. So inspiring to see my friends, new friends at the time, working. Really working the seawhores, danforth, kemmer, all those guys, no shit, they still inspire me all the time. Its not the same, anywhere else I've been. The Mpls/St. Paul Crew is great, they keep together, and work it to this day. I miss that time though. I'm sure nostalgia plays a big part. We, well at least I, didn’t know any better, it was like, hey, there are these bands, they play music, and hey, there is this gear you can buy and record shit yourselves, and then, hey guess what you can just call these cd manufacturing plants and if you have $ they will work with you! Idealism, and little connection to distribution, and the “industryâ€. Running a label, well shit, I don’t claim to know much more now then I did then. I wish I could have done better for those first bands. I still listen to those records, they taught me a lot. I loved seeing those bands.
I moved out of Fargo to work for Secretly Canadian, now becoming a giant in the distro/indie records business. They are from Fargo you know, well 2 of the 3 owners, and there first release was a June Panic record. However, I don’t think they have never claimed to be a “Fargo†record label.
So as I sit here on my laptop in Chicago, drinking vodka on the rocks, listening to a huge ass pile of demos, some random, but pretty much the whole catalog of this labels catalog (one that I have just heard about and got all shit to check out…)†… most of it is crap, or just a c average derivative pile… hmmm so what do I like, what am I putting out, shit that is mostly related to that original crew!!! Weird, and Awesome!
My last record as Super Asbestos was the record by The Post (Ben Swanson, owner of Secretly Canadian records, and former Fargo kid played drums in this band) Then I took a long time off. I was working for Secretly Canadian, still making records with who ever… June Panic of course, my main man, weird, we have gotten to a really good place working together. But, not really doing any label shit. I wasn’t too inspired.
Then two things happen…I get Chris Danforth's first record (wow!) and I saw a band live called Rapider Than Horsepower. The Chris Danforth’s would be my first record under the name Essay. It was time for a change, S.A. and Essay had both been on my mind, but this new stuff is all Essay, its different.
The last band under the name Super Asbestos had a member in it from Fargo (not planed that way). So now my baby is Essay Records. We released the Danforths first record, and did a tour on it. Close to the same time we did 2 records by Rapider Than Horsepower, and one by Vaz (more Fargo!) and the Seawhores (I cant believe I didn’t even drink when I met cody and adam, weird!) Anyway, we continue to release records, and we now relocated to Chicago. Same old, building a small studio space, and office as I write this.
I still work in record distribution, managing the shipping/warehouse/returns department at Southern Records during the day and work Essay at night. I'm lucky that I get to continue putting out records by people I love, friends that record themselves, do good work and a high percentage of them are all Fargo Related! (new danforths, and seawhores on the way!!!)
Discography
- SA01 Floid Matrix - Stop the Technology Madness
- SA02 [CTRL-D] - [cd]
- SA03 Mothmus - le Bomb Nuetron
- SA04 June Panic - The Silver Sound Sessions
- SA05 Spoon / S@M - 7â€
- SA06 The Post - Backwards
- SA07 The Chris Danforths - Outside Outer space
- SA08 Rapider Than Horsepower - Stagefright, Stagefright
- SA09 Rapider Than Horsepowe - This is My Big Night
- SA10 Vaz / Seawhores - Vazzed in a Sea of Whores
- SA11 Rapider Than Horsepower - Double CD
- SA12 The Licorice Roots - Licorice Root Orchestra (Jan '06')
- SA13 The Licorice Roots - Shades of Streamers (Summer '06)
- SA14 The Coke Dares - Here We Go With….
- SA15 Essay Comp 1 - Tastemakers (Feb '06)
- SA16 The Chris Danforths - Look out for the wolves (Feb '06)
- SA17 Rapider Than Horsepower - What’s our visibility? (March '06)
- SA18 Jad and David Fair - 12 Dozen Cookies (Jan '06)
- SA19 The Seawhores - Forest (Feb '06)
Highlights
- Super Asbestos Records started when Jarod and Jim when to the mall tee shirt shop and had two dark blue shirts made. Jim's shirt said 'Super' on the front and 'dios' on the back. Jarod had 'Asbestos' on front and 'stu' on back which meant when they walked together it said Super Asbestos Studios. Dorks.
- Started in the basement of Vinyl Connection.
- Seawhores, Dag Island Lewds and Velvet Lush all practiced (and rocked) next to them in the basement.
- Moved to a cool building in one of Fargo's Industrial zones.
