Scruffy new romantics from New York. But not wearing curtains.

“Our music was very different to what we’re doing now,” remembers The Faint’s bass player and founding member, Joel Petersen. As impressionable 19-year-olds inspired by local bands like Bright Eyes and Cursive, Petersen, along with vocalist Todd Baechle and Todd’s brother Clark on drums, formed an indie folk outfit and began playing run-down coffee houses in their Nebraskan hometown, Omaha. “It was *not* good,” he says with a nostalgic laugh, “but it was charming. To some. Maybe.”

Eight years on and The Faint (now a five-piece with Jacob Thiele on keyboards and death metal cast-off Dapose on guitar) have long since ditched those ill-fated lofi strummings. In fact, they’ve moved beyond guitar-led music altogether, and with their excellent forthcoming UK debut (their third album proper), Danse Macabre, they embrace a dark and decadent, synth-dressed sound instead.

Discovering keyboards was an inspiration for the band: “We didn’t really see much happening creatively with guitars - we just played them ’cos we had them. But the synthesizer had countless possibilities for sound - you could create any mood or texture with one instrument and that seemed pretty exciting,” Petersen explains.

Now the mood that consumes The Faint is one of dystopian hunger. Danse Macabre explodes in throbbing bouts of shuddering, sinister rhythms that propel you forcefully onto the dancefloor. And while the brooding basslines and thrilling synths hark back to the Human League and Depeche Mode, they exude the ferocious pop sensibility of early Duran Duran. Played live or through your headphones this makes for an irresistibly seductive delight.

But although their lyrics concern violence, death and drugs, The Faint do not dwell on melodrama. “Some lyrics deal with these things but they’re not glorifying them or being depressed about them. It’s just social commentary,” say Petersen. “Personally, I don’t think our lyrics are dark,” he continues. “To me they’re almost uplifting - wishing and hoping for a better future.” For The Faint at least, the future looks very bright. Alexia Loundras 12 December 02

Danse Macabre is released on January 27 on City Slang.