I'm surprised no one has mentioned the extra footage on the dvd. After taking guitar in the cranium, Mat goes to the hospital, where he is treated, and the back-and-forth between him and the doctor is hilarious. At one point the doctor is actually "rubbing his skull." It's also funny to hear Mat worry about the cost of treatment without healthcare, since he's uninsured and he has to have his mom pay the medical bills. It's a lengthy piece of extra footage, and a great extra for fans of the band.

The concert is nothing extraordinary, but it does spotlight the energy of the band, which is awesome. Musically, I wouldn't rank BYD as top-notch (though good at what they do), but they definitely bring it on stage. I didn't even really become a fan until seeing them live.

now i love tough guy hardcore music but there are just to little bands. i mean the only ones i can think of off the top of my head are Hatebreed Sick of it All Agnostic Front Madball and Throwdown. Shutdown is pretty good but i dont i would call them tough guy. but now finally we have Bury Your Dead. these guys have been around since 2003. they have to recording albums. Cover Your Tracks and You Had Me at Hello. now they just released this great live album. they take all of the energy off of those two albums and times it by 8. each is intense and awesome. the intensity only stop in the breaks between songs when the lead singer talks and yells at the crowd. the songs are filled with great hardcore yelling double kick drums and awesome breakdowns. the recording really makes you feel like you were there at the show. these guys are the best tough hardcore band since Hatebreed and on this album they prove it even more.

At first when I heard that Bury Your Dead would be releasing a live CD/DVD, I was kind of skeptical. I didn't really understand the purpose. Bury Your Dead only had two full lengths under their belt, and there was a period after "You Had Me At Hello" where the group briefly disbanded. A live album (which is what Victory is marketing this as) seemed somewhat weird. Then I heard that Victory didn't win the rights to "You Had Me At Hello" to re-release it, so I sort of understood again. However put all that aside, because "Alive" is a great pick up if you're a fan of the band or hardcore in general, especially if you've never seen Bury Your Dead live. There are some slight problems, but overall it's a great release from a great band.

The sound quality is great for this being a live release. You really feel like you're in the crowd at the show when you listen to the cd. However the vocals only play through the left speaker, which is kind of a problem. I don't understand why the production wouldn't run the vocals through both speakers. There's also a lot of giving the mic to the fans, which is a good and a bad thing, because sometimes there will be parts where the vocals just drop out for a while. This definitely gives it a genuine live feel though. As far as the show, the band sounds as good on this release as they do in person, so that is a major plus. The set list is pretty "Cover Your Tracks" heavy, but since this is a Victory release, and that's their only album on Victory records, it's no surprise. We still get some great old school BYD songs like "Sunday's Best" and "Camo Is My Favorite Color". The interaction between the band and the crowd is notable too, as they do a great job of incorporating the fans into the show. As for the DVD, it's as solid as the cd, pretty much the same things I've already covered, just apply them to the video. There's also some bonus footage of Matt going to the hospital afterwards, and a comical exchange with a Doctor. The only drawback besides the audio problems is that it's so short. The show is only 30 minutes all together, and then factor in the footage of Matt at the hospital, and overall this CD/DVD is just too short. Maybe if the band had played some more songs, or there would have been more behind the scenes footage to go along with it, I could have given this a 5. But alas, that is not the case.

If you're a Bury Your Dead fan or a fan of hardcore, you're most likely going to be pleased with this release, just don't expect too much. Basically it's only designed to focus around the live show, which in itself is great. The DVD may be lacking some footage, and overall it may be a little short, but most of that can be overlooked. If you haven't already done so, be sure to check out the band's two full length records "Cover Your Tracks" and "You Had Me At Hello" along with this. They are essential listening to go with this album.

Man what can be said about BYD that hasnt been said before. This DVD/CD shows the brutality of a Bury Your Dead show. Seriously folks, it DOES get that crazy. I saw them play last november and almost got trampled in a stage rush. There's some great footage of Mat getting staples by an extremely creepy doctor.

This is probably the most brutal underground (but not so underground no one's ever heard of) band out there.

And theyre the only ones left now that throwdown sold out and went anti-dancing.

This is the best concert dvd I've seen so far. The sound isnt the cleanest, but that's what makes it sound so real, since the sound at Chain isnt the best to begin with. If you've seen BYD live before you should know this is completely authentic. If you havent then after seeing this you'll be dying to! Overall a great balance of band footage and pit footage. The extra after show footage of Matt in the ER is great too. Definitely buy this dvd if you've A)like Bury Your Dead B)Like hardcore at all C)like live music or D) breathe oxygen and drink water in order to live