BACK TO LIST Artist: The Faint Album: LBJ-28 Blank-wave Arcade Publication: CMJ Website: cmj.com "The Faint's sophomore album leaves little doubt with regard to the band's influences. There are enough references to familiar new wave and synth-pop tunes of the '80s to keep the heads of longtime new music fans spinning: Aren't those shouts just like those on "Der Komissar"? Is that phrase lifted from "Blue Monday"? What separates the Faint from other retro-futurists (e.g. Stephin Merritt's synth-loving Gothic Archies), though, is that the band's core is all rock, and its use of dated synths and drum machines is merely cosmetic, as opposed to a lingering gimmick. Even if frontman Todd Baechle's vocals remain sufficiently David Gahan-ishly dour throughout Blank Wave Arcade, The Faint is a nervy, forward-thinking force to be reckoned with, and not just a tribute band in disguise."