Buried Alive

Buried Alive carried forward the legacy of vocalist Scott Vogel’s earlier projects by channeling their drive into a punishing brand of metalcore that reached listeners nationwide through relentless road work, a single searing full-length, and the eventual surfacing of the group’s final demo recordings. Like the approach taken by Hatebreed, the band’s songs relied on heavy, deliberate rhythms that occasionally accelerated to stir up the pit, all anchored by Vogel’s forceful delivery and the grim subjects explored in the lyrics.

The outfit assembled in Buffalo once Vogel’s prior band Despair dissolved; that short-lived yet active group had already issued material on Trustkill and Initial. Vogel had meanwhile joined forces with a member of Snapcase in Slugfest, so Buried Alive quickly gained traction in hardcore circles after circulating a two-song demo and playing a handful of shows. Formed in 1998, the band’s last lineup—guitarists Matt Roberts and Scott Sprigg, bassist Joe Orlando, and drummer Kevin Corcoran—was promptly signed by Chicago’s Victory imprint.

The label first released the Six Month Face 7" single, then issued the full-length The Death of Your Perfect World. After extensive touring with Skarhead and Madball, Buried Alive disbanded shortly after completing demos for a planned second album; Victory later compiled those recordings as Last Rites in 2000.