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There's been a fair resurgence of late in the quieter side of rock music, the likes of Frank Turner and King Blues proving that an acoustic guitar can be one powerful weapon when combined with powerful sets of lungs, heartfelt words and unshakable determination. It's a direction Eastbourne's frighteningly fresh-faced Speak Your Heart have taken with debut mini-album 'Under these lights we are transparent'. While lacking the brain-implanting melodies of a band like Saves the Day, this album displays a warming maturity one could presume may be lacking from a band so youthful, particularly on instrumental opener 'Lions hunt elephants now'. Things can only get better.
'ROCKSOUND' Magazine's review of 'Under these lights we are transparent', JUNE ISSUE 2008

"If you love melodic post hardcore, emo or pop punk then you may well love Speakyourheart. This acoustic quartet from Hailsham wear their hearts on their sleves but still have the urgency and energy of great melodic punk with this cracker from debut album 'Under These Lights We Are Transparent' on Engineer Records. Warning: 'Show Me Your Bleeding' will become stuck in your head like an arrow."
'Big Cheese' Magazine's review of 'Show Me Your Bleeding', August 2007

"...Not being able to rely on standard quiet/loud sonics due to the absence of the distorted guitar has made Speakyourheart put a greater emphasis on melody and gives the songs space to breathe...this album is an excellent introduction to a band not afraid to plough a slightly different furrow and I would recommend that anyone with even half an interest in the emo scene head over to www.engineerrecords.com and pick up a copy of this...you won't regret it. 8/10"
www.hardrockhouse.com

"...The new songs outshine the old, too: penultimate track 'Tell The Men We're Sinking' provides the most striking vocal section of the evening, instruments giving way to a brief melodic respite before closing with a build-up more frenetic than I’m comfortable with..."
www.eastmagazine.co.uk

"...This four-piece is catchy and slightly different due to it's double acoustic guitar, bass, keyboards and drums combo...they're a promising new band and one that shows the UK can produce pretty decent power pop/emo too. The intimate but upbeat 'These Words Were Simple', the acoustic Starting Line sounding 'Minutes And Miles' and the rousing 'Show Me Your Bleeding' are all highlights. Under these lights - these guys show promise."
'Under These Lights...' Album review, 'Big Cheese' Magazine, September 2007

"The honest-talking Speakyourheart are here with their debut 7-track album 'Under These Lights We Are Transparent', an ode to emo punk bands across the country that are dreaming of progression from garage to recording studio. However, this 4-piece band from Hailsham aim to offer more than the wearisome 3-chord monotony we've become accustomed to whenever a band sporting eyebrow piercings and skater shorts come into the office...We expect to walk around Reading Festival this year and find groups of beer-swigging youths swaying along to various tracks from 'Under These Lights...' acoustic guitars strumming until the crack of dawn."
www.rocklouder.co.uk

"While there's certainly no shortage of pop-tinged melodic aggressive rock bands around,there is a disproportionate number of bad ones. So when a band comes along that effortlessly fuses those elements with intelligent lyrics and passionate delivery,we have to stand up and take notice. Speakyourheart makes us do just that. The disc is a terrifically realised acoustic-emo rock album that oozes energy, aggression, angst and honesty...it's got more hooks than your grandpa's tackle box. The choruses here are the kind that demand the listener to sing along, while pumping either a triumphant fist or metal "rock on" hand proudly in the air. This is so damn good!!!"
'Under These Lights...' Album review, from Sprawl Zone, Greece (zine and radio show)

"Remember when ‘emo’ wasn’t a taboo word? Nostalgic for the days when ‘emo’ meant sincere, emotional song-writing rather than tantrums and eyeliner? If so, then homegrown emo-rock outfit speakyourheart could be the answer to your prayers. The Hailsham-based four-piece may list the likes of Alexisonfire and Thrice among their influences, but thankfully speakyourheart aren’t just another bunch of ‘screamo’ drama queens dropping off the conveyor belt. Maybe it’s the fact that the band shun the use of distorted heavy guitars in favour of a jangly, acoustic-led emo sound not unlike old greats Appleseed Cast, or that frontman Laurie sings with genuine passion, without a lame pseudo-scream in sight. Whatever the reason, the band’s latest effort ‘Under These Lights We Are Transparent’ (Engineer) is the sound of four guys wearing their hearts on their sleeves, and should win over fans of traditional emo and pop-punk alike."
www.planet-loud.com

"From the fragility of the instrumentally cladded opener ‘Lions Hunt Elephants Now’, Speak Your Heart immediately set out to bring a tear to your eye as the touching music melts into ‘Are You The Witness’. Building upon beautiful melodies that swim neatly against tentatively thumping rhythms, ‘Are You The Witness’ finds the young band capturing Dashboard Confessionals’ alluring combo of intriguing melodies swarmed around passion fuelled lyrics that literally explode against the brisk rhythms the band creates...‘Under These Lights We Are Transparent’ exudes a raw honesty that instantly captures your attention as ‘The Callous And The Kind’ whirls with pain staked humility that gets gently washed aside for the jangling ripples of ‘These Words Are Simple’ until you are literally pulled into Speak Your Heart’s world and become gleefully lost there...Still a young band, Speak Your Heart is already creating anthemic striving songs that will tug at the heart strings with the brutally beautiful sincerity...for those who like their music to have some integrity and true passion sparkling out of every line, prepare to meet your new favourite band.
'taken from a review of 'under these lights we are transparent' by jodie woodgate - www.roomthirteen.com'