I rarely have time to watch rock video. I'd love to see more, no question. But other than video extras on individual albums, TV's all night music show "Rage" (In Australia) and a very questionable Channel V show on Pay, the medium for harder edge video is just about non-existent from where I sit. Add to the fact that if and when it does get aired, it's something like three o'clock in the morning. In my house, sleep rules at this time. So, obviously I get quite excited when kind hearted labels send me their DVDs to review. Overseas, with the reintroduction of shows like Headbanger's Ball, many a metal label has tapped back into the visual medium. Furthermore, with the popularity of DVD technology, it makes sense for record labels to plough some dollars into the visual representation of their bands. New Jersey Hardcore/Metalcore label "Trustkill Records" has its finger on the pulse in this regard and with the backing of the mighty Roadrunner label they have put together this fairly simple, but well intended DVD showcasing a number of acts on the Trustkill roster. Trustkill have been around since 1995, and back in my early radio days I remember being intrigued with all of this underground hardcore coming from them. I hassled label supremo Josh Grabelle incessantly to send me his latest batch of releases. Ten years on, Trustkill has grown and developed into one of the most respected and trustworthy Hardcore/Metalcore labels around. The best thing about this DVD is its simple but effective presentation. Furthermore, one of the main benefits of viewing this DVD is that it serves as a great visual companion to last years Trustkill compilation "Blood Sweat and Ten Years" which was packed with 18 tracks of the labels best bands. Of course, to really appreciate this DVD you have to be partial to a form of music that incorporates everything from commercial driven emo-rock (Roses Are Red, Hopesfall), tough-guy hardcore (Throwdown, Nora and Most Precious Blood) and brutal Metalcore (Bleeding Through). It is the latter than will hold most interest for regular metal fans, Bleeding Through and Eighteen Visions (their "Waiting for the Heavens" track is killer!) in particular are highlights with slick, professionally produced videos that rocks. Josh Grabelle's attention to detail on this DVD is most impressive. It is quite obvious that he is extremely proud of his bands. Rather than line up his bands back to back without rest, he has taken time to introduce each video, highlighting the significance of the band to Trustkill and the specialities of the video shoots themselves. It a nice personal that I'm sure each band appreciates. As interesting as these videos are, it is the additional bonus features that really show the Trustkill bands in their true light, the live setting. Included here we get a selection of live videos and trailers from events such as the Hellfest 2002 and 2003, plus clips from the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival 2003. If you've never witnessed the pits at a Metalcore gig, then these live clips will certainly highlight the violent intensity that these bands induce. Watch those Kung-Fu Haymakers fly! If you're partial to this form of music, in particular the heavier acts like Bleeding Through, Most Precious Blood and Eighteen Visions, then "Video Assault Vol.1" is a most insightful and interesting look at the ever growing Trustkill label. Well worth a look.

On their first-ever video collection, Trustkill provides some of their finest videos along with plenty of live performances from various festivals from the past few years. For those who are really into Trustkill's roster this is a must-have. Bands such as Nora, Bleeding Through, Eighteen Visions, Throwdown and Most Precious Blood are represented here along with a few others. Each video begins with an explanation of the video by Trustkill founder Josh, which gives you an idea what each video is about, along with other tidbits about each video that you would've never known about unless you asked the bands themselves. Although I had already seen all of the live material from previous Hellfest and NE Metal and Hardcore DVD's, it's a nice bonus and it works well for those who don't own those DVD's. I'm not going to go into each video for you, you'll just have to buy it for yourself and do your own interpretations

Grab the Doritos, kick off your steel-toes and fire up the DVD player, Trustkill Records just gave you a reason to not watch Full House re-runs. The first of hopefully many instalments of Trustkill Video Assault is here and it's about damn time if you ask me. This DVD is an excellent showcase featuring a wide spectrum of the artists that make up the Trustkill roster. From hardcore and metal acts like Throwdown and Bleeding Through to the more emo-core guys such as Roses Are Red and ArmsBentBack to everyone in between, Volume One has something for every fan. Each video is introduced by Trustkill honcho, Josh, who gives a little behind the scenes account on how and where it was made, the director, etcetera. Some cool little tidbits include a story about Bleeding Through's video shoot for 'On Wings of Lead.' The band happened to be next door to Limp Bizkit and one of Fred Durst's little bitch-boys came over and informed the cast and crew that anyone who looked at Durst wrong would be thrown off the set. I don't care who you are,�that's funny. To put out a collection like this was a brilliant move on the part of the folks at TK as it serves well to promote some of their lesser known (to me at least) acts by throwing them in with the bigger names on the label. Thanks to Video Assault I'm now keen to some kick ass bands like Most Precious Blood and Open Hand I might have never heard without seeing this. Other noteworthy vids include Eighteen Visions' 'You Broke Like Glass' whose girl on girl scene garnered them a nomination for Sexiest Video of The Year, and Poison The Well's 'Botchla' which happens to be the first video released by a Trustkill band. Check out the extras menu for trailers of the Hellfest 2002, Hellfest 2003 and the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival DVDs, as well as clips from all three highlighting various TK acts. All of this for a mere ten bucks! You can't not add this to your collection. Fuck Ebert and Roper, Ryan gives it two horns up.

The best way to expand your musical horizons. Ever heard names such as Poison The Well, Bleeding Through, Most Precious Blood or Hopesfall and wondered what they hell they were all about but you had a hard time justifying spending your hard earned cash on a CD that you're not 100% on? Well wonder no more. Trustkill Records through Roadrunner Records have just released their first DVD that highlights those artists as well as a heap more that they proudly offer on their current roster. Not only does this DVD feature an even dozen video clips featuring some of the aforementioned artists, it also features lives clips and trailers from the legendary Hellfest (2002 and 2003) and New England Metal And Hardcore Festival (2003) that give an even further insight into the label and what they are all about. If that isn't enough, Josh Grabelle from Trustkill introduces each clip and gives an interesting and informative behind the scenes type wrap up about the video itself for each promo clip on the DVD. There's no stone unturned with this treasure chest of exposure into the world of Trustkill artists. From the radio friendly White And Gold by Roses Are Red to the visually misleading brutality of Bleeding Through's Love Lost In A Hail Of Gunfire to the hardcore based The Great Red Shift by Most Precious Blood to the Wayne Isham shot clip for his son's group Open Hand (the track In Your Eyes), there truly is no better representation around that highlights the diversity of bands that the label has to offer. It's probably a fair statement to say that a lot of the Trustkill bands won't be for everyone but by the same token, there's definitely something for everyone here, emo, screamo, metalcore, rock, whatever your taste in the many genres that make up the metal scene nowadays, it's worth a viewing or three for sure. There are some familiar names and some not so familiar names contained within but hands down this DVD will open the eyes of many to some new genres and bands that might not be considered to be true metal nowadays (if such a definition exists at all). Who cares anyways? It's pretty closed minded to dismiss something just because it's not considered to be pure metal or whatever. Open your mind. Check it out. If there's nothing on the DVD that really floats your boat, at least you have an informed opinion on it and a better understanding and appreciation for the styles of metal that you like. But you'll never, never know if you never, never go, right?

With shows like Headbanger's Ball back on the rise, the call for metal videos has been quite up and coming. Record companies know this and the push for their bands to get videos done has been ever on the rise as well. Trustkill Records is no different. In fact, about 3/4ths of the videos on this DVD are from this last year or so. Trustkill Video Assault: Vol. 1 features videos from bands like Bleeding Through, Eighteen Visions, Most Precious Blood, Throwdown, and more. With twelve videos in all, plus commentary before each, you definitely have tons to watch here. Now the question is... do you even like bands on Trustkill? I for one enjoy most of their bands, some more than others, but I think it's safe to say I easily like about 3/4ths of their roster to some degree or another. Each video is well done and directed well, none of them looking overly cheap or anything. The commentary before each video is a rather nice addition as well. Each band gets their introduction as well as some cool facts about the video and what took place during the making. Like for instance, in Throwdown's video for "Forever," the "Fight Club"-esque scenes actually involve real fighting. Every one of those mammoth punches landed in the video are real, and in fact, one of the dudes broke his hand hitting another guy in the head. Talk about tough... damn. I found most of the videos quite enjoyable (well, from the bands that I like) such as the intensity found in Poison the Well's "Botchla," the sexiness of Eighteen Visions' "You Broke Like Glass," and the sweet camera work in Throwdown and Bleeding Through's videos for "Forever" and "Love Lost in a Hail of Gunfire." The DVD also includes clips and trailers for other DVD's offered through Trustkill like the ones for Hellfest and the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival. I guess my one big complaint with the DVD is the�censoring of the language during the videos. This is especially apparent in Throwdown's video (which is lame, because that's probably one of my favorites) where every "shit" and "fuck" is completely censored. Come on now Trustkill, could you not have just slapped a "Parental Advisory" or something to that degree on here? I really don't think that would have killed the sales at all, but who knows. I just found it to be quite a bit of an annoyance. Other than that, I can't really come up with any complaints of the DVD, it's cool actually watching these on the full screen as opposed to my computer screen, since I don't watch any of the music video shows on TV. I can say that I would recommend this, however, obviously only to those that enjoy the bands on the label.

This is a collection of videos of bands that make up Trustkill Records roster, with label head-honcho Josh G. providing the introductions and quirky facts about the videos. The videos on this DVD are cool little films that compliment the songs. Eighteen Visions "You Broke Like Glass" features some hot girl-on-girl action, Bleeding Through's "Love Lost in a Hail of Gunfire" is a creepy horror movie with wicked spin-kicks, while Throwdown's "Forever" is an over the top hardcore version of Fight Club. Most of the videos here are trying to do something a little different than the standard punk videos we've all seen before, which is what a lot of bands fail to do when they make videos.

About damn time! Long has my soul yearned for the day that one of my favorite all time labels release all their videos in the convenience of a DVD so I don't have to keep steaming them or downloading them on my computer. Now that this day has come, I don't know what to do besides watch it then change my underwear afterwards: it's that good! It features two videos each from Eighteen Visions and Bleeding Through as well as other Trustkill superstars: Poison the Well, Open Hand, Nora and my new-found favorite, Hopesfall. The extras are cool but not up to par: clips and ads for the Hellfest 2002, 2003 and the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival DVDs. I know other types of DVDs that do the same thing but this isn't Yank. Once you view this DVD, you'll realize how powerful Trustkill's roster really is.

Trustkill Video Assault Vol. 1 is (what seems like it will become) the first installment of a compilation of videos from a myriad of signature Trustkill Records artists. The DVD includes 12 videos from ten artists, including bands like Most Precious Blood and Hopesfall who have called the label home for a while, but not shirking new blood like Roses Are Red, one of Trustkill's most recent acquisitions. Extras include two Hellfest and New England Metal Fest DVD trailers, as well as some footage from the DVDs The DVD is not packed with a plethora of enticing extras, since they are not the focus, so the videos are really the meat and potatoes of the disc. It is a precise encapsulation of Trustkill as a label, showcasing their current line-up to a tee. The main disappointment of the video collection is that ten of the 12 videos come from the bands' most current releases (not excluding Hopesfall's "The Bending," as no video off of A Types had been shot in time for the production of the DVD). Eighteen Visions' "You Broke Like Glass" from Vanity and Poison The Well's "Botchla" off of Tear From The Red offer the only glimpses into Trustkill's archive, and they don't even stretch that far back. Fans of the older stuff who aren't totally down with the newer sounds of Trustkill won't have much with which to work. However, those who are up on the new stuff have an awesome sampling of what the label currently has to offer. The highlight of the DVD is the commentary Josh Grabelle, Trustkill's head honcho, contributes to each video. Grabelle sets up each video by describing aspects of filming, the band or other little facts. The comments accent the videos wonderfully, causing you to examine the linear way in which Roses Are Red's "White And Gold" is filmed or why Armsbendback switches between black and white and color in their video for "The Arms of Automation." It definitely puts a nice bow around the cohesive package, and stops you from cursing at yourself that you didn't just download all of the videos and burn them to your own DVD. Additionally, if you're a visual arts nerd, it's cool to have all the videos juxtaposed to see how each band conceptually deals with music that is relatively similar. If you're unfamiliar with a band or two on the comp, it's a good way to hear more from the act. The DVD collection is very good for what it offers, but its main fault lies in its appeal. You're not drawing too heavily from those who breathe Trustkill's past. However, that is not the intention of the release, and it's a well-done showcase of the present and future of Trustkill Records.

New Jersey's Trustkill Records have certainly come a long way from being a simple zine back in 1993. In just over a decade, the label has managed to set themselves up as one of the more interesting labels who's roster serve out everything from emo-rock, hardcore, metal, punk and everything else rock in-between. In that time, Trustkill Records have not only released a lot of albums, but have also managed to help some of their artists put together some clever promotional video clips as well, which has prompted the labels first complete DVD compilation (Which I'm sure is going to be quite an ongoing series as the label goes from strength to strength) of all their artists clips to date. Trustkill president Josh Grabelle spends all of two seconds introducing himself (In the opening credits) before giving an insight into the making of the first clip in Roses Are Red's 'White And Gold' (From 2004's Conversations). Shot in the same house where some of 'Heat' was shot (The modern day Al Pacino classic), the dark looking video features some clever rolling camera work amid the bands performance amongst a house party of sorts. Bleeding Through are featured twice with 'Love Lost In A Hail Of Gunfire' and 'On Wings Of Lead' (From 2003's This Is Love, This Is Murderous), both of which have a real high class look about them, as too do the rocking/rather sexy Eighteen Visions videos ('Waiting For The Heavens' and 'You Broke Like Glass' from 2004's Obsession). Providing something far grittier is Most Precious Blood with the theme based 'The Great Red Shift' (Starring the same model on the cover of 2003's Our Lady Of Annihilation), hardcore legends Throwdown and their 'Fight Club' inspired 'Forever' (From 2004's Haymaker) and Nora's 'I Should've Sent Flowers' (From 2003's Dreamers And Deadmen). Making up the rest are Open Hand's jagged 'In Your Eyes' (From 2003's The Dream), emo-rockers Hopesfall's performance based 'The Bending' (From 2003's The Satellite Years), Armsbendback's self directed/David Lynch inspired 'The Arms Of Automation' (From 2003's The Waiting Room) and Poison The Well's (As a four piece at the time) stark 'Botchla' (From 2003's Tear From The Red). And if the great selection of videos and musical styles isn't enough (Not to mention the insightful, interesting and forthright onscreen commentary from Grabelle), there's also some lengthy trailers and additional footage from Trustkill Records roster from the Hellfest 2002, New England Metal And Hardcore Fest 2003 and Hellfest 2003 live DVDs. Trustkill Video Assault Vol. 1 is not only great value for money, but also a great introduction to the Trustkill Records roster, which proves to some the best of what the hardcore scene currently has on offer by far.