this album is classic. 'the faint' being my all time favorite band and all, i cannot excuse this album because its drenched in emo-rock and not the ecstatic electro-punk the faint have grown to produce. tracks like 'as the doctor talks', 'repertoire of uncommon depth', and 'getting / giving the lock' are no doubt classic "faint", the distorted and angled guitars\ wink towards 'the faints' future direction, with some electro keyboard sometimes rising into the mix with the classic haunting melodies 'the faint' have trademarked in what has certainly become their own genre. no-one should dismiss this album because it's not quite danceable or laced with sweet electro hooks, but the lyrics are as poignant as ever and this album was certainly an underground game-changer in it's day, influencing many with what was the future of emo, rock, and eventually, live band produced electro and dance.

okay, now this is their first album which we can all tell. anyone how loves this album is some soft rock fanatic preying off the dead cold failure of a band's first album. You just don't understand how much better their songs are now! and for all of you people saying that we're not used to it, i didn't lose my faith in the faint when i discovered this but it doesn't mean i need to like it.

It's obviously not the typical faint everyone is used to hearing, but if you started out on this CD to the new electronic stuff, you will appreciate this much more. I love this CD and it shows the faints real colors!

Everyone complaining about this album, it's their first record. They developed their sound after this record not before or even during. Quitting hating on this record by saying it's not the Faint you know and love, expand your musical horizons

For a first CD, this is pretty good. Sure it's not the Faint we all know and love, but I still think that it is a great CD. For the record, The Faint did not cut themselves, therfore it is not Emo!!

although this album sounds completely different from the others, it still has the same great lyrics. it's just more rock sounding rather than electronic.

I was completely shocked when I heard this album; this is not The Faint that I know. Sure, change in music can be good at times, but this album is too different from their other three. They do make an effort to add in their electronica, but it doesn't show much.

but c'mon, give 'em a break. it was their first cd. they (obviously) weren't entirely sure what in the world they wanted to do, but if you listen to it you can hear, barely, yes, but all the same hear the subtle beginnings of today's Faint. i don't understand their over-use of ":" in this cd, but hey, whatever floats your boat, i s'pose. anyways, if you think of this as a stand-alone cd, and not one of the Faint we all know and love, then it's not horrid. it's not emo, either. ahem. another absolutely amazing band, though, from the wonderful wonderful Saddle Creek records.

I've listened to The Faint for quite some time and they are my all time favorite band, but I HATE this cd. It does not in any way at all reflect what they are now. It is dull and just dripping with "emo". If you like emo, this cd may be alright. Personally, I can't stand that genre and I can't stand this cd. (I saw The Faint tour with Bright Eyes, but left after the Faint so I didn't have to sit through Oberst's dronings. All you emo kids shoot me now.) The rest of their music is so intricate and beautiful with incredible lyrics, like "Violent" from Danse Macabre...the story he tells is chilling. Another favorite as far as lyrics is "Paranoiattack" off of Wet From Birth. You can really tell the progression of the band's sound starting with Blank-Wave Arcade and moving on to the more polished Danse Macabre and then the more mature Wet From Birth. With each release The Faint take a leap forward. It will be exciting to see what they come up with next. As for Media, stay far away from it if you want a good impression of what The Faint is capable of.