Gritty/grimy metal was the name of the game for underground rockers
Buzzoven. A group that was quite obscure during their tenure together (they split in 2001),
Buzzoven are rightfully considered trailblazers nowadays, as they combined elements of extreme metal and punk rock during a time when few (if any) other bands had the cajones to merge the two styles. Their 2010 release,
Violence from the Vault, collects five cheerful little ditties that managed to slip through the cracks, and have now been dusted off and put on display. Recorded after their 1994 album,
Sore, these tunes are certainly as intense and brutal as anything else the lads offered -- especially "Mainline" and "Breed." And while the over-15-minute long meandering ditty, "Nod," borders on never-ending sonic torture, fans of
Buzzoven's early work should definitely enjoy this unexpected blast from the past. ~ Greg Prato