The Unseen formed in 1993 around high school friends Mark Unseen (vocals/drums), Tripp Underwood (vocals/bass), and lead guitarist Scott Unseen. With surprisingly little member turnover, the lineup soon also included Paul Russo (guitar/vocals), while drummer Pat Melzard joined up in 2002. After appearing on numerous punk compilations, the band issued the LPs So This Is Freedom and Lower Class Crucifixion on A-F Records, the label run by Pittsburgh punk iconoclasts Anti-Flag. The band also continued to tour incessantly and release spit-flying 7" singles with classic, cut-and-paste punk rock aesthetics and titles like "Raise Your Finger, Raise Your Fist" and "**** Off, You Worthless Lying ****." In 2001, the band returned with the LP The Anger and the Truth for California's BYO, followed in 2003 by Explode; a tour with Millencolin and booking on the 2003 Vans Warped Tour followed. Russo was no longer in the band when State of Discontent appeared two years later on Hellcat Records. After various fill-ins, longtime friend and guitarist Jonny eventually completed the quintet after the record's release, and the Unseen stayed on the road at home and abroad with both headlining dates and as support for Tiger Army and Rancid. Going straight from the van back into the studio, the crew began work on their fifth album in late 2006. The resulting Internal Salvation surfaced in July 2007, as the band sweated it out again on the summer's Warped Tour.