“The Faint is one of those bands that can send me into a state of the mind that I can’t put my finger on, but I also can’t get it from listening to anyone else. That’s what makes them who they are.” – SwitchBitch Noise
Favorite Track Musically: Unseen Hand
Favorite Track Lyrically: Loss of Head
Rating: 7 of 10
Help in the Head: Oh the noise! This record starts off with crunchy bit crushed sounding guitar noise that is a staple of this band. It doesn’t keep you waiting very long until it digs right into the foot stomping single, ‘Help in the Head’ which you can watch their music video for HERE. Already at 17 seconds in I knew I was pumped on the production of the record (well done Mike Mogis). The drums sound huge, everything sits well and has it’s own place in the mix. Everything is very clear, yet purposefully and tastefully gritty as all hell! About a minute in, the track seems to break-up as the audio fizzles out which powerfully brings you right into the chorus. This track seems to utilize analogue synths as more of a sprinkled topping as opposed Jacob Thiele’s (keys) traditional melody based lead lines. It allows the vocals to take the foreground a bit along with the distorted bass tone similar to that of the track ‘I Disappear’ off The Faint’s ‘Wet From Birth’ (2004) where I believe they got that tone by puncturing a the cone of the bass woofer with a fork!
Mental Radio: I don’t think I would have chosen this track to come after ‘Help in the Head’ in that the BPMs are very similar along w/ the key and overall vibe of the song, but who the hell am I? At any rate, the theme of this track is set with a 70’s surf sounding guitar lead that progressively gets layered with drums, synth, bass and vocals. Speaking of vocals, they still have the traditional ‘Faint’ vocal effect, but also have a lot more clarity, which allow more of a vibe to shine through of Todd Fink’s inflections.
Evil Voices: Umm fuck yes! This track starts off so “wet” sounding and stands very true to their old records, which for me is definitely a positive thing. The structure has a nice arch and flow to it, the melodies are great, the sounds are very nicely used and placed. Overall, a great ‘darker’ track to the record.
Salt My Doom: One of the heavier tracks on the record that comes in blasting with a very punk influenced drumbeat interweaved with a “vamped like” eerie synth that resembles a record skipping. Although this track is only 2:19 long, midway through I felt like I heard everything the song had to offer and would have been ok with it ending about a minute in staying true to the ol’ punk rock vibe.
Animal Needs: Todd (vocalist) seems to be a main focus on this track as he relays the message that we don’t need much in this world to survive and that we want too much these days. I’m not going to lie, I was hoping by the title that this would be one of those throwbacks about dirty sex which I miss from their first records (particularly Blank Wave Arcade), but aside from being slightly repetitive which I’m lead to believe is intentional, it’s a very solid track.
Loss of Head: Dapose (guitarist) really landed on some sweet, unique tones on this track. Really interesting chord progressions that flow well and take you on a little journey through the dark land of “The Faint”. Perfect BPM to shake those hips to and very catchy lead lines by Jacob (keys) along with very capturing lyrics (by Todd) about “being alone” that really works well in setting an overall mood. This may be a favorite!
Dress Code: The shortest track on the record, yet packed with tons of tones that have some serious character. It seems to be used as mid-record interlude in that the vocals are similar to that of a new report. Monotone, no melody, just kind of railing off the average ‘robot like’ day-to-day activities through a vocoder. Kind of a nice semi-depressing breather to break up the album for a moment, which I think was the intention.
Scapegoat: Very cool and different feel coming from The Faint. ‘Scape Goat’ is a very upbeat and happy sounding track that has 80’s dance and punk leanings. There are solid and catchy melodies by Todd and some wild syncopated hi-hat work going on. Short and sweet.
Your Stranger: This is a very strong song, but I kind of feel the same way about the transition from ‘Scapegoat’ to ‘Your Stranger’ as I do with ‘Help in the Head’ to ‘Mental Radio’ (tracks 1 to 2), in that these songs back to back seem fairly similar in a lot of ways.
Lesson from the Darkness: At first this track reminded me the most of older The Faint stuff, which I always appreciate. About a minute through I was a little disappointed in that the song didn’t seem to have the flowing arch I was hoping for however as it progressed I really liked the direction they took it and further understood the prolonged movement of it. There was kind of an abrupt entrance to the pre-chorus coming from the post verse instrumental section with a kind of random drum fill that I still don’t know if I can completely wrap my head around, but once the chorus comes in and to the end of the track, we’re smooth sailing with great flow and melodies interweaved between the vocals and the synth.
Unseen Hand: There is some serious energy and attitude on this track. Fuck yeah, they hid this little gem second to last! The bass/drum unified yet syncopated rhythm in the verses really get me going. I love the flow of this song, the gritty production, and the vocals (although lyrically, I think I may need to take some acid to piece this one together).
Damage Control: Love the sounds! Super droney, very wet “milky” synths, eerie, dark and perfect ending to the album. The Faint is one of those bands that can send me into a state of the mind that I can’t put my finger on, but I also can’t get it from listening to anyone else. That’s what makes them who they are.
Connect with The Faint:
Watch Their Video for ‘Help In The Head’
