The Unseen formed in Boston 1993 and released the demo EP Too Young To Know...Too Reckless To Care in 1994. Two other 7" EPs followed, before the release of their debut full-length, Lower Class Crucifixion on A-F Records. Another two albums followed on the same label before they signed to BYO Records, and then, Hellcat Records. Each of their albums have sold moderately better than previous releases.
The quintet also released a best-of compilation for the European market in June 2000 titled Totally Unseen: The Best Of The Unseen, which contained two previously unreleased tracks.
For the release of their 2001 album The Anger And the Truth, "Chainsaw" re-accompanied the band in the studio to record the song No Evacuation, a song he originally wrote.
After being a member of the band for nearly ten years and writing most of the material on Lower Class Crucifixion, So This is Freedom?, and The Anger and the Truth, Paul Russo left the band after only contributing vocals to one track on their fourth album Explode. Citing differences in direction, he is now the leader of The Strings, an indie rock/folk band. He remains friends with his former bandmates.
Mark Unseen, the lead singer, formed and currently runs ADD Records. He also briefly joined the Maine street punk group A Global Threat as a second singer, and recorded the full-length What the Fuck Will Change? and Until We Die before deciding to concentrate on his duties with The Unseen.
There has been some controversy concerning the band, including allegations that in recent years they have "sold out". Most widely cited is the fact that The Unseen have produced music videos to air on commercial music video channels such as MTV2, an avenue looked-down upon in the underground streetpunk scene. The band reacted to this perception with the song "So Sick of You."
They have toured Europe, North America, Australia, Japan, and Mexico with many punk heavyweights from The Bouncing Souls and Rancid to decidedly more hardcore outfits like Hatebreed and Sick Of It All. Since the departure of Paul, the band has used many replacements on tour such as members from The Virus, Strike Anywhere, and F-Minus, however, recently, on their MySpace page The Unseen have included a fifth band member, Jonny, an ex-guitarist of A Global Threat who was in the band at the same time as Mark.
2006 also saw the release of Tripp's book So This Is Readin'?, which details the life and hardships of being in an underground band with dry comedy. It started as a lengthy band history on the band's website, but after a few amusing "chapters" he was contacted by a publishing company to release it in book form.
In May 2006, The Unseen announced on their official website that they would begin writing their sixth studio full-length album during the summer of that year. The album, titled Internal Salvation, came out on July 10, 2007. The first song released from that album is a track titled "Right Before Your Eyes". In support of the new album, the band has joined the thirteenth Warped Tour.
Who's Who
The Unseen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Stare at me as I walk down the hall
Call me a fag
Say that I'm gay but who's the one getting laid?
Fuck you, who's who!
Don't like me, think I'm a mess
Don't like my hair, don't like my clothes
Don't like me 'cause the way I dress
Don't like me 'cause of your ignorance
Have different styles and different thoughts
Why don't you wake up before you get fuckin' dropped
The lyrics to The Unseen's song "Who's Who" addresses the issue of societal judgment based on an individual's appearance. The first stanza highlights how people often ridicule those who do not conform to their standards of clothing, behavior, and sexual orientation. But the singer questions the validity of their criticisms and indirectly reveals how oppressive the culture of conformity can be.
The second stanza is a response to the criticism. The singer denies that they are a mess, and instead of conforming to the popular image, they choose to be different. The singer doesn't like being judged based on their appearance; that the critics fail to recognize is their ignorance. The line "Why don't you wake up before you get fuckin' dropped" is an indication that the singer is not going to take it anymore and is ready to fight back against the hegemonic forces.
In summary, the song is critical of the pervasive culture of judging based on appearances and encourages individuals to embrace their differences and be proud of their individuality. It also highlights the consequences of entrenched ignorance, intolerance, and oppression in society.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't wear team coats, can't play ball.
I don't conform to your stereotypical ideas of masculinity and athleticism.
Stare at me as I walk down the hall
You judge and scrutinize me as I simply walk by.
Call me a fag
You belittle and insult me for not fitting into your narrow idea of what it means to be masculine.
Say that I'm gay but who's the one getting laid?
You accuse me of being homosexual as an insult, but in reality, I have more sexual partners than you.
Fuck you, who's who!
I refuse to let your baseless insults define me or affect my sense of worth.
Don't like me, think I'm a mess
You don't like me because I don't fit into your preconceived notion of normalcy and neatness.
Don't like my hair, don't like my clothes
You dislike my personal style and expression.
I can't fight but I'll bite off your nose
I won't physically engage in your aggression, but I will fiercely defend myself if necessary.
Don't like me 'cause the way I dress
Your dislike of me is based solely on superficial reasons, such as clothing choices.
Don't like me 'cause of your ignorance
Your lack of understanding and open-mindedness leads you to unfairly judge and reject me.
Have different styles and different thoughts
Our differences in style and thought should be celebrated, not used to ostracize and attack others.
Why don't you wake up before you get fuckin' dropped
You should try to broaden your perspective and be more accepting before you face the consequences of your narrow-mindedness.
Contributed by Evan V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.