SEABOUND BEYOND FLATLINE ALBUM DEPENDENT, METROPOLIS RELEASE: JANUARY 19, 2004 REVIEW: FEBRUARY 2, 2004

I had some real trepidation about this band due to the haze that is "futurepop" which is sometimes assigned to them. But fear not. Seabound are no pathetic bunch of sots who would fall into this "category". No, rather, they are first-class musicians and even more importantly, lyricists. When their press release stated that the listener ought to get to know them in terms of their songs, I balked. Their debut had done nothing for me. Indeed, I found it quite capable of inducing an aural flatline of sorts.
These two fellows, Frank Spinath (vocals) and Martin Vorbrodt (music) have spent three years working on this new album and it shows. There is an assured voice now working in Seabound and a programmer who understands the understated. This alone makes them stand-outs. I really like the darkwave sound which is evolving into their nexxus, it reminds me of Silke Bischoff/18 Summers and Deine Lakaien. But it is no copy. Seabound's much-ballyhooed lyrical ability is well founded. Songs like "Digital" marry both coldy precise sequences to indisputably unhinged words. I cannot stop playing "Soul Diver", "Separation", "Torch" or "Watching over You". They are the four stand-out tracks on this album. Precise and moody, these songs have given me faith in these two gentlemen like never before. They vary the tempo marvelously on their sophomore effort. This album is less a collection of songs and more a hoard of iconoclastic vignettes. Each with its own personality and feel.
I thank them effusively for making such an excellent record.

PETER MARKS