Slab-O-Concrete Productions was a British

mail order Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as: * Sending an order form in the mail * Placing a telephone call * Placing a ...

distributor A distributor is an enclosed rotating switch used in spark-ignition internal combustion engines that have mechanically timed ignition. The distributor's main function is to route high voltage current from the ignition coil to the spark plugs ...

and

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

, founded by Peter Pavement, Dave Hanna, Emma Copsey, and Chris Tappenden; operating mostly in

Brighton and Hove Brighton and Hove () is a city and unitary authority in East Sussex, England. It consists primarily of the settlements of Brighton and Hove, alongside neighbouring villages. Often referred to synonymously as Brighton, the City of Brighton and H ...

during the 1990s. Initially selling

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

small press A small press is a publisher with annual sales below a certain level or below a certain number of titles published. The terms "indie publisher" and "independent press" and others are sometimes used interchangeably. Independent press is general ...

comics a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...

and

zine A zine ( ; short for '' magazine'' or '' fanzine'') is a small-circulation self-published Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to writ ...

s (including Pavement's own comics), Slab-O-Concrete also imported publications from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. Slab-o-Concrete was originally based in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

; it moved to

Hove Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th cen ...

in 1995. After intensely ramping up its publishing line in the late nineties (including moving into CDs and prose books), Slab-O-Concrete was laid low in 2001 as policy changes in the book industry caused cash-flow issues.

History

In general, Slab-O-Concrete avoided distributing traditional

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

s, instead making connections with

underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground (S ...

publishers,

sters,

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

s, and other

subcultural A subculture is a group of people within a culture that differentiates itself from the parent culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values regarding cultural, poli ...

scenes. By 1994 Slab-O-Concrete had developed into a publisher, repackaging small press comics and zines for the bookshop market and originating new works. Notable creators published by Slab-O-Concrete included

Jessica Abel Jessica Abel (born 1969) is an American comic book writer and artist, known as the creator of such works as ''Life Sucks'', ''Drawing Words & Writing Pictures'', ''Soundtrack'', ''La Perdida'', ''Mirror, Window'', ''Radio: An Illustrated Guide' ...

Ian Carney Ian Carney is a British comics animation writer. Born in Liverpool, Merseyside on 21 August 1962, Carney began writing comics in the 80s for Fleetway Editions in the UK and First Comics and Dark Horse Comics in the US. He is probably best kno ...

Craig Conlan Craig Conlan is a Scottish comics writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, sh ...

Alan Moore Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman:'' ''The Killing Joke'', and ''From Hell' ...

Woodrow Phoenix Woodrow Phoenix is a British comics artist, writer, editorial illustrator, graphic designer, font designer and author of children's books. Phoenix is best known for ''Rumble Strip'', published in 2008, a non-fiction look at the difficult social ...

, and

Aleksandar Zograf Saša Rakezić (born 1963 in Pančevo, Serbia), better known by his pen name Aleksandar Zograf, is a Serbian cartoonist. His works focus mostly on life in the former Yugoslavia, such as ''Life Under Sanctions'', ''Psychonaut'', ''Dream Watcher'' ...

. In 1998, Slab-O-Concrete published four titles in partnership with

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

. The comics were designed as 16-page

minicomics A minicomic is a creator-published comic book, often photocopied and stapled or with a handmade binding. In the United Kingdom and Europe the term small press comic is equivalent with minicomic, reserved for those publications measuring A6 (105& ...

with card stock covers, designed to be sealed and used as postcards.

Ilya Ilya, Iliya, Ilia, Ilja, or Ilija (russian: Илья́, Il'ja, , or russian: Илия́, Ilija, ; uk, Ілля́, Illia, ; be, Ілья́, Iĺja ) is the East Slavic form of the male Hebrew name Eliyahu (Eliahu), meaning "My God is Yahu/ Jah. ...

's ''A Bowl of Rice'' was about the forcible relocation and killing of Shan rice farmers in

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

. Enrique Rodríguez's ''Freedom from Discrimination'' was a story about maltreatment of and violence against street children in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, and undocumented, unaccompanied immigrant children in the

. Dan Jones' ''Just Deserts'' told the story of a female

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

migrant worker A migrant worker is a person who Human migration, migrates within a home country or outside it to pursue work. Migrant workers usually do not have the intention to stay permanently in the country or region in which they work. Migrant worker ...

's false conviction and punishment in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

. Peter Arkle's ''Love'' told the story of Mariana Cetiner, a

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

woman arrested and imprisoned for allegedly attempting to seduce another woman. In 1999, Slab-O-Concrete published another 16-page mailable minicomic called ''Donna's Day'', by Donna Mathes and

Peter Bagge Peter Bagge (pronounced , as in ''bag''; born December 11, 1957) is an American cartoonist whose best-known work includes the comics ''Hate'' and ''Neat Stuff''. His stories often use black humor and exaggerated cartooning to dramatize the reduced ...

. One of their final publications, in 1999, was ''The Worm: the Longest Comic Strip in the World'', by

and a "galaxy of greats," which was published in association with the Cartoon Art Trust and the Swedish Council for Cultural Affairs. "In one single working day, over 125 British cartoonists gathered together in one place to create 'the longest comic ordlessstrip in the world.'"''The Worm'' (Slab-O-Concrete Productions, 1999). ''The Worm'' featured introductions and explanatory text in English, Swedish, and French.

Titles published

Music

* ''17%: Hendrix Was Not the Only Musician!'', by

Billy Childish Billy Childish (born Steven John Hamper, 1 December 1959) is an English painter, author, poet, photographer, film maker, singer and guitarist. Since the late 1970s, Childish has been prolific in creating music, writing and visual art. He has le ...

& His Famous Headcoats (1998) * ''The Attack of Everything'', by

Jad Fair Jad Fair (born June 9, 1954) is an American singer, guitarist, graphic artist, and founding member of lo-fi alternative rock group Half Japanese. Biography Fair was born in Coldwater, Michigan. In 1974, he and his brother David formed the lo-fi ...

and

Jason Willett Jason Willett is an American musician, known largely for his work with experimental rock groups including Half Japanese, Can Openers, Pleasant Livers, X-Ray Eyes, The Dramatics (Martha Colburn and Jason Willett), The Jaunties, The Attitude Robots ...

(2000)

Comics

* Amnesty International minicomics ** ''A Bowl of Rice'', by Ilya (1998) — published in partnership with Amnesty International ** ''Freedom from Discrimination'', by Enrique Rodríguez (1998) — published in partnership with Amnesty International ** ''Just Deserts'', by Dan Jones (1998) — published in partnership with Amnesty International ** ''Love'', by Peter Arkle (1998) — published in partnership with Amnesty International * ''Anarchy in the UK: the Comic'' (1994) * ''Artbabe in Pigskin vs Paintbrush!'', by

(1999) * ''Assume Nothing: Starring Liliane: Evolution of a Bi-Dyke'', by Leanne Franson (1997) * ''Axis Mundi'', by

and Garry Marshall (2000) * ''Bad Hair Day'', by

(1997) * ''Bulletins from Serbia: E-mails and Cartoon Strips from Beyond the Front Line'', by

(1999) * ''Cheap Date: Antidotal Anti-Fashion'', by Peter Blake (2000) * ''Daddy is So Far Away, We Must Find Him!'', by Wostok and Grabowski (1998) * ''Doc Trader'', by

(2000) * ''Dole Scum: Co-starring Bunny Girl and Pig Boy'', by Nigel Auchterlounie (2000) * ''Donna's Day'', by Donna Mathes and

(1999) * ''Dream Bytes'', by Lee Kennedy (1994) — ongoing series * ''Dream Watcher: Comics'', by

(1998) * ''Eager Beaver (Missive Device)'', by

and

(1999, ) * ''The End of the Century Club: Countdown'', by

Ed Hillyer Ilya, Iliya, Ilia, Ilja, or Ilija (russian: Илья́, Il'ja, , or russian: Илия́, Ilija, ; uk, Ілля́, Illia, ; be, Ілья́, Iĺja ) is the East Slavic form of the male Hebrew name Eliyahu (Eliahu), meaning "My God is Yahu/ Jah. ...

(1999, ) * ''Excreta: Stories of Bodily Fluids'', by Ole Comoll Christensen (1999) * ''Fishbowl'' #1 (1994), #2 (1995), by Chris Tappenden * ''Floozie'', by Jane Graham (1998) * ''Gash'', by Soren Mosdal (2000) * ''The GirlFrenzy Aillennial: a Big Girl's Annual'', by Erica Smith (1998) * The Great Challenge: an International Anthology of Political Cartoons (1998) — exhibition catalogue to accompany the Great Challenge held at Oxo Tower Wharf, London, 1998 * ''Hairy Mary: Fun Fur'', by

(1999) * ''Hairy Mary: Grrrl'', by

(1999) * ''Handy Hints for a Consumer Society'', by Chris Tappenden (1995) * ''Liberty Fernando: a Story of Zits & Revolution'', by Ole Comoll Christensen (1999) * ''Lux and Alby: Sign on & Save the Universe'', by

Martin Millar Martin Millar is a Scottish writer from Glasgow, now resident in London. He also writes the '' Thraxas'' series of fantasy novels under the pseudonym Martin Scott. The novels he writes as Martin Millar dwell on urban decay and British sub-cult ...

and Simon Fraser, with lettering by Ali Kirkpatrick (1999) * ''Meet John Dark'', by Darryl Cunningham and

Simon Gane Simon Gane is a British artist from Bath known for his work in the comic book field. Gane grew up influenced by the comics of Hergé and Jacques Tardi.Spurgeon, Tom"CR Holiday Interview #3: Simon Gane,"''Comics Reporter'' (December 17, 2007). He ...

(1998) * ''Pavement'' (issues #0, 1-3; title changed to ''Pavement Pizza'' for issue #4), edited by

Peter Pavement Slab-O-Concrete Productions was a British mail order distributor and publisher, founded by Peter Pavement, Dave Hanna, Emma Copsey, and Chris Tappenden; operating mostly in Brighton and Hove during the 1990s. Initially selling British small press ...

, with contributions by Pavement, Dave Hanna, Lawrence Burton, Adeline Wartner, Paul John, Welly, Andy Hemingway,

Renée French Renée French (born 1963) is an American comics writer and illustrator and, under the pen name Rainy Dohaney, a children's book author, and exhibiting artist. Her work is characterized by her "obsessive-looking and highly unsettling visual style ...

, and Chris Tappenden (1990–1994) * ''The Plot Thickens'' (1997) — published with Brighton-based Armchair Comics * ''Punk Strips'', by

(2000) * ''

Schwa In linguistics, specifically phonetics and phonology, schwa (, rarely or ; sometimes spelled shwa) is a vowel sound denoted by the IPA symbol , placed in the central position of the vowel chart. In English and some other languages, it rep ...

'', by Bill Barker (1995) * ''Simon Cat in "Taxi"'', by Nigel Auchterlounie (1999) * ''The Slab-O-Concrete Sampler'', (1990) edited by

* ''The Slab-O-Concrete Inactivity Book'', edited by

and

(2000, ) * ''The Slab Selection'', edited by

(1996, ) * ''Spiral Dreams'', by Al Davison (2000) * ''Sugar Buzz: Live at Budokan!'', by

(1999, ) * ''Teaching Through Trauma'', by Leanne Franson (1999) * ''Time Warp: The End of the Century Club'', by

(1999, ) * ''Windy Wilberforce in The Saga of the Scroll'', by

Ed Pinsent Ed Pinsent (born 1960, Liverpool, England) is a British cartoonist, artist, and writer. Biography Ed Pinsent is the son of the classical scholar John Pinsent and was brought up in the city of Liverpool. Pinsent has written and drawn his own sm ...

(1995, ) * ''Witch'', by Lorna Miller (1999) * ''The Worm: the Longest Comic Strip in the World'', by

and a "galaxy of greats" (1999) * ''XXX (Strip) Burger'', by Stripburger Magazine (1999)

Prose

* ''Below Critical Radar: Fanzines and Alternative Comics from 1976 to the Present Day'', edited by

Roger Sabin Roger Sabin is an English writer about comics and lecturer at Central St. Martins in London, England. Work Sabin is best known for his books ''Adult Comics'' which has gone through a number of editions, remaining in print for 20 years and is t ...

& Teal Triggs (2000, ) * ''Billy Childish: & His Famous Headcoats; Hendrix Was Not the Only Musician'', by

(1998) * ''

Cometbus Aaron Elliott (born May 20, 1968), better known as Aaron Cometbus, is an American musician, songwriter, roadie, and magazine editor, best known as the creator of the punk zine ''Cometbus''. Career Born in Berkeley, California, Cometbus started ...

'', by

Aaron Cometbus Aaron Elliott (born May 20, 1968), better known as Aaron Cometbus, is an American musician, songwriter, roadie, and magazine editor, best known as the creator of the punk zine ''Cometbus''. Career Born in Berkeley, California, Cometbus started ...

(1999) — zine * ''Ground Level'' (1994) — zine about

alternative comics Alternative comics cover a range of American comics that have appeared since the 1980s, following the underground comix movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Alternative comics present an alternative to mainstream superhero comics which ...

* ''Little Girl Blues'', by Lee Kennedy (1994) – zine * ''Spy TV: Just Who is the Digital TV Revolution Overthrowing?'', by David Burke (2000) * ''Towards 2012: the Journal of Millennial Mutation'' ** ''Part 2, Psychedelica'' (1996) ** ''Part 3, Culture and Language,'' by Gyrus T. Features, et al. (1997)

Notes

References

"Slår" to "Slatton,"
Reading Room Index to the Comic Art Collection. Michigan State University Libraries Special Collections Division * * {{Authority control Book publishing companies of the United Kingdom British comics British small press comics Comic book publishing companies of the United Kingdom Book distributors Small press publishing companies Publishing companies established in 1994 Companies disestablished in 2001 1994 establishments in the United Kingdom 2001 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Defunct companies of the United Kingdom