Reviewed by Greg Sammons

Flee The Seen are without a shadow of doubt the lightest band ever to grace the ranks of Facedown Records. That's not to say that their brand of screamo-tinged melodic post-hardcore is going to sit easy on the ears of a fan of candyfloss pop-punk, just that for a label associated almost exclusively with hardcore - they seem an intriguing choice. However, they are a good choice and manage to avoid being typecast as a cookie-cutter version of [insert emo/screamo band name here] as many other bandwagon-jumping bands have. The female lead vocals of Kim Anderson (who understandably would encourage people to draw comparisons with Tsunami Bomb) add an extra texture of emotion that male vocals simply cannot achieve. Although the male backing vocals lack nothing in delivery, nor is the music lacking in much either. This is certainly a release that female scenesters will revel in, whilst more open-minded male listeners should enjoy it too - but don't expect anything too heavy or you will be let down. Kim's beautiful but gritty voice somehow makes the music feel less heavy than it would be otherwise. This is the best release on Facedown so far this year and may still remain one of the strongest label debuts of 2006 in the hard music arena.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

Interested in reviewing music? Find out more here.