Buzzov•en
Sore

The group has already been presented before by other reviewer colleagues. Brief reminder? Simply one of the founding fathers of Sludge Metal.

In North Carolina, way back in 1989, this creature named "Buzzov•en" was given birth by the mind of Kirk "Reverend Dirtkicker" Fisher. After disbanding in 1999, the group re-emerged on the scene, more locally than internationally, in very recent times and is planning to continue seriously.
Fisher remained the only constant member of a group that encountered various issues during their journey: drug problems and Fisher's bipolar disorder (which he is reportedly still battling with presumable success) and continuous lineup changes, featuring several well-known names of the North Carolina Sludge scene and beyond (T.Roy Medlin of Sourvein and Dave "Dixie" Collins of Weedeater, to name two).

After several EPs and the debut album "To A Frown" (1993), among the cornerstones of early Sludge, they were noticed by Roadrunner Records (which at the time was still independent) who gave them the opportunity to release in 1994 precisely "Sore," which I would define as the most representative work of Buzzov•en.

It is indeed the title-track "Sore" that starts this grimy journey through the spite and negativity of being: right away a nine-minute-plus boulder, just to make clear who and what we are facing, a track divided between toxic superhuman strength and moments of pure, gray, and slow suffering.

An album that reeks of heroin and crack. The screams of a man in serious withdrawal from these poisons... and perhaps it's not all fiction.

With their last efforts, they manage to bring to life the ferocity of "Unwilling To Explain", "Behaved", and "Done", decidedly Hardcore Punk tracks; "Should I" and "Hollow" (among the best tracks), however, are songs that stand on creaky and constant feedback, ultra-distorted and ultra-slow bass, where Reverend Fisher's screams desperately, figuratively, tell of social decay. The prelude is this, without mincing words.

If there were maracas, they would be distorted drastically too. But once the listening is over, everything is distorted to our eyes but especially to our minds.