MUSIC: The Faint, Fasciinatiion
Amanda Sorell
Thursday, August 21st, 2008
With their original, electronic sound and dance-punk beats, The Faint have long been one of Omaha, Nebraska’s most influential and remarkable bands. The band established their new wave, synthesized sound with their 1999 release Blank-Wave Arcade, and since that time, the buzz around The Faint has been anything but faint. In 2001, Danse Macabre arrived in the form of dance-ready synth rock, and in 2004, the ambitious Wet From Birth added a twist to The Faint’s already unique sound with the addition of synthesized strings. During the four-year hiatus between Wet From Birth and Fasciinatiion, The Faint built their own recording studio and began their own record label, blank.wav, parting from their label of the past ten years, Saddle Creek Records, a label which, with the signing of The Faint and a few other well-known Omaha bands (Cursive, Bright Eyes), helped jump-start the now flourishing Omaha music scene.
The Faint hint at themes used on previous albums (sex, anyone?) and don’t disappoint when it comes to unique—and sometimes nauseating—lyrics. “Fish In A Womb” arranges lurid lyrics like “That slice in my neck, It’s oozing jelly clear as glass” against the backdrop of a beautiful melody, which can be distracting. The Faint also seem to have departed from Wet From Birth’s busy, layered sounds with an album more simple and uncluttered than the albums before it. Even in a less complex form, the music is unmistakably The Faint. They continue to be innovative and refreshing. The hip-hop-meets-techno “Fulcrum and Lever” accompanies several lively, dynamic tracks like the ones heard on their previous albums—“The Geeks Were Right” and “Psycho” are as dance-ready and fun as anything The Faint has done in the past. With Fasciinatiion, they stick to their roots while tweaking their sound at the same time. While it may not live up to some of their earlier work, it’s still The Faint—solid, enjoyable electro-dance music with a fresh, unique sound.
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