Nascent Analog Unleashing Entity VIOLENT VIDEO Delivers Some Limited Edition Fresh VHS with OFF THE BEATEN PATH and DEATH TO THE WORLD On Deck and Comically Confronts the Burning Question of “Is This Rare?”
If you’re tuned into this VHS-obsessed blog on the regular, you’re sure to know that the rewind re-animation and subsequent fresh VHS entities are in absolute full swing. Now, more than ever, there are Tapeheads taking the initiative to unleash their own brand of VHS beasts to share with their rewind-inclined brethren and beyond. The inspiration for Violent Video? Our own ever-expanding culture. The folks at Violent Video were influenced by their fellow Videovores from analog-inclined online communities to scratch that video vindicating itch and pump some radical slabs of magnetic magic into the continuous rewind resurgence. Violent Video has offered up some limited edition (and now sold out) alternatives to expensive old-school slabs, and now they’re gearing up to commit some indie horror to analog glory. Read on, my fellow videonauts, and wrap your mind around the meaning of “meathooking”…
Well that’s a fun story. There’s a guy who buys up every copy that comes available. (I even sold him a copy!) I think he’s up to around 50-60 copies. And when he gets them in, he posts a pic of all of them together on a shelf and asks “Is this rare?”. It really gets under some folks skin pretty bad. I think it’s funny myself. So the term “Is this rare?” gets thrown around in the FB VHS groups a lot. It’s also coined the term “meathooking”, when you collect multiple copies of the same movie. I thought it would be a chance for some of the people out there who miss out on copies, and a fun way to poke back at the “Is this rare?” thing going on. Those sold out in 24 hours, as well. If I do more, they’ll have different covers and maybe different content and even a different transfer.
Rub-a-dub-dub, dead chick in a tub! Violent Video's low-budget, ooey-gooey logo, man!
Can you tell us a little about yourself, your Videovore habits and the path to creating Violent Video? I got into collecting back in the late 90’s. When DVD came in and analogs hit the sale bins I went crazy buying up anything horror or horrible looking. I’ve gotten up to almost 700 VHS at one point, but then the basement of the house I was renting back in 2005 flooded and I lost about half of them to mold/water damage. I kinda boxed up the good stuff and forgot about them till a couple of years ago. My wife kept asking me to clean out the closet, so I did, and put them up on display in the den! She wasn’t too happy. 
A still from VV's upcoming VHS release DEATH TO THE WORLD! Watch the full trailer HERE, mang.
Why did you want to start up this analog unleashing entity? What’s the inspiration to produce fresh slabs of analog glory? I was seeing in some of the groups I’m a part of on FB there were guys releasing stuff. Some licensed, some boots, some companies, some solo rollin’. I had started an Amazon storefront called Violent Video back in 2005 before I got out of the game. Take A Shit Or Get Off the Toilet Video & VHS is Dead really got me interested in releasing some stuff. I found a couple of movies I was interested in getting out there and the directors were really open to the idea of putting them out on VHS, so VV was born!
A look at the full cover art for the now sold-out VV edition of TOXIC ZOMBIES. VHSpark it!
Cover for the upcoming Violent Video VHS release of OFF THE BEATEN PATH!
The much coveted and now sold-out Violent Video IS IT RARE?! VHS edition of THREE ON A MEATHOOK. Dig it.
Another radical still from DEATH TO THE WORLD coming soon to VHS from Violent Video. THAS GOTTA HURT!
Why do you think it’s important to keep VHS rolling? What do you think of the fresh VHS wave as a whole? I love my VHS, man. I have a shelf in the den with all of my “good stuff” on it. And it’s fun to see what people collect: some guys really dig foreign stuff, some like SOV, some are into gore, zombies, all kinds of stuff. I just buy stuff I like. I’m not out to have a complete collection of a certain label, or 50 copies of the same movie, but I take pride in the stuff I do have that I really dig. I like putting stuff in folks’ hands that they might not otherwise be able to get hold of. One of our next movies is completely unreleased in any format, and I’m working on one that’s only available overseas as well. So we’ll see what all we can get out to folks.
Artwork for DEATH TO THE WORLD. Creepin, mang.
What’s next for Violent Video, duder? I’m doing DEATH TO THE WORLD next. It’ll be live next month. It’s a film I actually helped produce. Never been released, so it’s cool that it’ll get its first release via VHS. It’ll be limited and signed by the director, as well. It’s a nod to slasher/serial killer movies with a Carpenter-ish vibe and a pretty cool story. Check out the trailer!! Anything else you wanna shout out to all the Videovores here in Lunchmeat Land? Keep the hunt alive ya’ll! Some of the best stuff is still out there in nasty second hand stores, flea markets, and who knows where! Leave no tape unturned, keep the VHS vibe alive, and be excellent unto your analog BROS!!! Check us out on FB for the latest and greatest, and thanks a ton to Lunchmeat for the interest and helping get the word out there!!!It’s our analog pleasure, mang! Seems like Violent Video sure knows how to have some fun and get radical indie flicks flowin’ in the VCR, so you best stay tuned for all the updates on their rewind re-animation creations, mang! Groove to their Official Facebook for all their video vindication announcements or just cut to the chase and see what’s cookin’ on their Official Storenvy page. With these low-run numbers, their VHStuff is sure to sell out, so keep those analog-obsessed eyes on the prize, duder! I have a funny feeling they’ll come up with even more limited edition VHS excellence, indeed.
Groove and Groove and Just Have Fun with It!
Josh Schafer