MUEN: First of all, who is The Faint? Where are you guys from originally and how who you describe your sound to someone who has never heard it before?

Jacob Thiele: The Faint is Joel Petersen, Dapose, Clark Baechle, Todd Fink, and myself, Jacob Thiele. We're from Omaha. When people ask what we sound like, I usually say we're electronic danse music for punks.

MUEN: Jacob, it seems as though your arrival brought new direction to the band. Describe the transformation that occurred between the Media album and the Wet from birth album. Do you think it was a natural evolution or was it just your dominating presence?

Jacob Thiele: It was a natural thing. The boys in the band were looking for a new direction and they had already decided that electronics and synths were the answer when I came along. On our first couple tours we realized that the style of guitar we were accustomed to was sort of commonplace in the underground and all the more reason to try new instruments and genres.

MUEN: So, how do you feel about the current state of the music industry? How do you see The Faint fitting into that vicious little cycle of mainstream music?

Jacob Thiele: I think it's evolving, which is exciting. We try to be on the forefront of technology, so hopefully we'll fit in nicely. Although we still haven't managed to put out a DVD...

MUEN: Nice. I love it. Okay, so what's up with the Rick Rubin rumors? True or False? Can you reveal any hint on the status of the next album?

Jacob Thiele: We didn't sign anything with American. We talked with them for a while, had some meetings and such, but nothing came of it. The status of the next album is that it's currently being written and we haven't recorded anything yet.

Interview by Amanda Chapman
(Axiom / MUENmagazine.net)

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