Violence Recordings launched in 2002 as the successor to Vortex Recordings, with Hive as owner and San Francisco as its base. Hive announced the change in February 2002. The label focuses on drum and bass, including jump up, with a dark, gritty sound, and it has staged events and showcases in settings ranging from clubs to festival stages.
Its first single, “Cujo” / “Headhunter” by Hive and Juju, came out in 2002. In 2005 the label issued the compilation Welcome to Violence on CD and as a five-record vinyl set. Its 2008 compilation Salvation appeared on CD, digitally and as a limited three-record vinyl edition, with tracks by Hive and other artists. Hive’s single “Nothing's Sacred / Dresden” also came out on Violence Recordings in 2007, keeping the owner’s own productions at the centre of the label.
