Once upon a time, all I listened with stuff like the UNSEEN. Spiky haired drunk punk with sometimes positive, sometimes depressing, but always idealist lyrics. As I strayed away from the chaos (being sXe kinda does that) bands like these (CASUALTIES, TOTAL CHAOS, PINKERTON THUGS, etc…), I noticed that the UNSEEN however never did, and by my surprise, they turned into a highly competent punk rock band with rabid fans showing up across the globe. This, their third full-length, and first for big-time punk rock label, BYO surpassed my expectations in every way. While I won’t question their comments on “Where have you gone?” as song dedicated to those who leave the beloved values of underground punk rock, overall, THE UNSEEN are still on their quest to get kids to appreciate what they have, especially in attending local shows and supporting all-ages venues (“What Happened?”). For a band that was easily dismissed as being another problem to the drunk punk phenomenon that contributed to venues closing left and right in Boston in the late 90s, I definitely like seeing them bring this issue to light. Musically, THE UNSEEN churn though 12 tonic tracks of blazing music with speed, precision, and unbridled spirit. Although there are times where everything seems like one giant wall of noise, THE UNSEEN are clearly focused on what they are doing, and this is a rocking, memorable album, in a style that hasn’t been on my better side in close to five years. The artwork is really sharp, and helps contribute to the overall character of this band – pinned up, sewn on, stitched in stride, and oozin’ of energy and brightness. Overall, “The Anger and the Truth” is one strong album and something that might stick around my stereo longer than I had previously expected – I just hope I don’t start spiking my hair up again…yikes!

BYO

www.byorecords.com