VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENT came to being around 1996/7, a time when "tough guy hardcore" was experiencing a surge with acts like FURY OF FIVE, 25 TA LIFE, CROWN OF THORNZ, and many others. V.I.S. was very much in that vein; chunky riffs with Roger Miret style vocals and a jocular attitude that seemed at odds with the ethos of GEN-1 hardcore acts. while clad in the sneakers, basketball shorts, and sports jerseys of many acts and fans of the day, V.I.S. added an additional air of mystery to their stage presence by wearing ski-masks and balaclavas, concealing their identities and putting forth a more dangerous image that intrigued the audience. the members of V.I.S. wore them at all times, so no one knew who they were or what they looked liked. the group also ran their voices through modulators, disguising their natural cadence and furthering their mysterious aesthetic.
like most of the bands in this genre, V.I.S. cut their teeth playing matinees and VFW Halls, always making sure to emphasis that they and their songs were "For The Kids". quickly amassing a sizable following on their shows alone, regional fans waited a little over a year before V.I.S. released any physical document of their music. at their much anticipated record release show, they sold out of their debut release.
there was no title, no songs listed on the sleeve of the LP, just the letters "V.I.S." in a varsity font and picture of a heavyset male holding a bullhorn. when the audience opened up the record and saw the contents inside, V.I.S.'s proclamations of being "For The Kids" took an alarmingly sinister turn.
it was revealed that their lyrics and album art were littered with graphic references to and photos of children in sexual situations. this tied into the photo on the LP's sleeve; Victor Salva; the genre film director who was found guilty of child molestation/possession of child pornography. as for the songs themselves, while still retaining the group's primary influences (Judge, Strife, Killing Time),they took on a much more noisy and vicious tone on the record than in a live setting, with piercing layers of noise and feedback omnipresent throughout the run time, going to places where Integrity had only whispered. having never mentioned the titles of the songs at their shows, their fanbase was disturbed to find that the songs they had been moshing to bore names like "Orphan Kinks", "Fetal Seizures", "Sperm Crater", "Sexualized Adolescent Loophole", and others lost to time.
like thieves in the night, V.I.S. disappeared in short order after the record release show. most of the albums were thrown away by the disgusted listeners, though some of the more "adventurous" types in the scene held on to their copies, making it a much sought of item among collectors of obscure hardcore ephemera and/or transgressive material. copies of their sole release can only be found as multi-generation rips in the far flung corners of the deep web, and rumors of the parties involved still persist, but no one has step forward to claim membership in the band. a popular thesis connects
RAINCOATER frontman Richey Walker to the group, as they emerged some time after Walker's exit from that band.
