2003 single by Linkin Park
"
Faint
" is a song by American
rock
band
Linkin Park
from their second studio album,
Meteora
. The song was released as the album's second
single
on June 9, 2003, and is the seventh track. It entered the top thirty on the majority of the
charts
it appeared on. On the Hot 100, it peaked at #48. The song reached #1 on the US
Modern Rock Tracks
, becoming the band's third number-one hit on the chart. The song would later be featured on the group's mashup EP with Jay-Z,
Collision Course
,
where it was mashed up with lyrics of the song
Nigga What
from
Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life
.
American metalcore bands
I, the Breather
and
Memphis May Fire
recorded a cover of "Faint", as well as Japanese metalcore band
Crossfaith
featuring
Masato Hayakawa
from the
post-hardcore
band,
Coldrain
. "Faint" is considered one of Linkin Park's most iconic and most covered songs, with its intro and primary guitar riff being widely recognizable.
Overview
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This song was released as two singles, "Faint 1" and "Faint 2." They differed in cover color and track listing ("Faint 1" is
blue
, and "Faint 2" is a brownish-green mixture). "Faint 1" was also released as a Canadian version that includes the tracks, but does not include the
music video
. "Faint 1" lists the length of "Lying from You" as 3:43 but is actually 3:04. "One Step Closer", on "Faint 2", is 3:43 long. A promotional sampler was given to members of the street team and some members of the LPU, the band's official fan club. A demo for the song can be found on the
Underground 9.0
Fan Club release. It features
Mike Shinoda
rapping with different lyrics, with only some backing input from
Chester Bennington
. A live version of the track was featured as a b-side for "
What I've Done
".
The success of this single, and the success of Linkin Park's "
Numb/Encore
" mashup with
Jay-Z
, led
MTV
to produce a mashup of "Faint" with "
Toxic
" by
Britney Spears
. This was done by DJ Rob Boskamp and can be found on
MTV
's MTV Mash Up - Amazing Remixes! CD.
During the Minutes to Midnight World Tour, they extended the length of the song during live performances, playing the riff from the bridge while Delson played a solo. In some live performances during
Living Things World Tour
, it is played after "Tinfoil" as the opening song on the setlist.
Music video
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]
The video, directed by
Mark Romanek
and shot in
downtown Los Angeles
, consists of the band performing in front of an audience and a
floodlight
. The audience consisted of members from the
LPU
. Almost the entire video is shot from behind the band, allowing the strong lighting to portray them in
silhouettes
. Therefore, the faces of the band are not shown throughout most of the video, except at the final chorus where the band is then shown from the front.
They perform in front of a derelict building structure with graffiti, such as a monstrous version of the
Hybrid Theory
Soldier and some Linkin Park symbols.
A director's cut was made that features an extended ending where
Mike Shinoda
spray paints the words
En Proceso
(
Spanish
for
In Process
) on a garage door.
[6]
[7]
Commercial performance
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"Faint" was officially released to US radio on July 1, 2003. The song reached the top twenty on the Hot 100 Recurrent Airplay, and the following week it debuted on the
Hot 100
, the official US chart. "Faint" peaked at number forty-eight in its eighth week and remained on the chart until its twentieth week. The song entered the top twenty on the majority of the
Billboard
charts on which it appeared. "Faint" proved popular on
Modern Rock Tracks
radio, attaining the number one position on that chart for six weeks (with 37 weeks on the chart), and peaked at number forty-eight on the
Hot 100 Airplay
format and number two for two weeks on the US
Mainstream Rock Tracks
.
"Faint" reached the top thirty on the Canadian Singles Chart where it peaked at 21.
The song was released in
Australia
,
Europe
and
New Zealand
on July 22, 2003. "Somewhere I Belong" reached the UK top ten, while "Faint" reached the top twenty. "Faint" continued the trend of lower-charting singles when it debuted and peaked at number fifteen, and remained in the chart for 8 weeks. "Faint" peaked at number twenty-five on the Australian Singles Chart and stayed at its peak for two weeks.
"Faint" reached 67 on the Japanese singles chart and 48 on the
Eurochart Hot 100 Singles
and it would also peak at forty in seven countries and reached the top twenty in the
United Kingdom
and
Spain
. It was a moderate top ten success on the LAUNCH Music Videos Top 100.
To date, it has been less successful than its predecessor "Somewhere I Belong" and the following single "Numb" where both singles charted higher. However, it has peaked higher than "Numb" in the Belgium Singles Chart (#44) and Italian Singles Chart. Additionally, it was more successful on the Mainstream Rock Track and the Modern Rock Track chart than the other singles from Meteora. It was the 8th Best performing song of the decade on the Modern Rock Track chart, and the 13th best performing song of the decade on the Mainstream rock Track Chart. It is their second most successful single behind "
In the End
" on the rock charts. Moreover, the single peaked at #15 in the UK, charting for 8 weeks, being their second-most successful song from
Meteora
in the UK after "Somewhere I Belong".
In September 2023, for the 35th anniversary of Modern Rock Tracks (which by then had been renamed to Alternative Airplay),
[8]
Billboard
ranked "Faint" at number 92 on its list of the 100 most successful songs in the chart's history.
[9]
Track listing
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All tracks are written by Linkin Park
All tracks are written by Linkin Park
Part 2
Title
|
---|
1.
| "Faint"
| 2:43
|
---|
2.
| "
One Step Closer
" (Reanimated Live)
| 3:43
|
---|
3.
| "Faint Live" (Video)
|
|
---|
All tracks are written by Linkin Park
Maxi single
Title
|
---|
1.
| "Faint"
| 2:43
|
---|
2.
| "Lying from You" (Live)
| 3:06
|
---|
3.
| "One Step Closer" (Reanimated Live)
| 3:41
|
---|
All tracks are written by Linkin Park
10" vinyl picture disc
Title
|
---|
1.
| "Faint"
| 2:43
|
---|
2.
| "
Lying from You
" (Live)
| 3:07
|
---|
Personnel
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]
Linkin Park
Additional musicians
Charts
[
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]
Weekly charts
[
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]
Certifications
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]
References
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]
- ^
"Concert review: Linkin Park, Vector Arena"
. February 22, 2013
. Retrieved
August 15,
2016
– via New Zealand Herald.
- ^
"10 Nu-Metal Songs That Don't Totally Suck"
.
Consequence of Sound
. 12 September 2019
. Retrieved
1 April
2021
.
- ^
Weiss, Dan (April 6, 2012).
"Ten Rap-Rock Songs That Are Actually Awesome"
.
LA Weekly
. Retrieved
August 9,
2016
.
- ^
"Ranking Every Alternative Rock No. 1 Hit from Worst to Best"
.
Consequence of Sound
. 5 July 2017
. Retrieved
9 October
2019
.
- ^
Law, Sam (April 17, 2020).
"The 20 greatest Linkin Park songs ? ranked"
.
Kerrang!
. Retrieved
November 3,
2021
.
- ^
"Faint (Original Official Video) on Youtube"
.
YouTube
.
from Linkin Park's Youtube Channel
- ^
"Faint (Official Duplicate Video) on Youtube"
.
YouTube
.
from Linkin Park's Youtube Channel
- ^
Rutherford, Kevin (September 7, 2023).
"Alternative Airplay Chart's 35th Anniversary: Foo Fighters Remain No. 1 Act, 'Monsters' New Top Song"
.
Billboard
. Retrieved
November 15,
2023
.
- ^
"Greatest of All Time Alternative Songs"
.
Billboard
.
Archived
from the original on October 6, 2023
. Retrieved
November 29,
2023
.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
.
ARIA Top 50 Singles
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
(in German).
O3 Austria Top 40
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
(in Dutch).
Ultratop 50
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
(in French).
Ultratip
. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
- ^
"Top 50 Singles"
.
Jam!
. Archived from
the original
on February 15, 2004
. Retrieved
November 21,
2023
.
- ^
"Linkin Park anda popular"
.
El Siglo de Torreon
. August 24, 2003.
Archived
from the original on May 4, 2023
. Retrieved
May 4,
2023
.
- ^
"Top Lista Hrvatskog Radija"
.
Croatian Radiotelevision
. Archived from
the original
on August 10, 2003
. Retrieved
April 14,
2023
.
- ^
"Linkin Park anda popular"
.
El Siglo de Torreon
. August 24, 2003.
Archived
from the original on May 4, 2023
. Retrieved
May 4,
2023
.
- ^
"European Hot 100 Singles"
(PDF)
.
Music & Media
. Vol. 21, no. 15. July 5, 2003. p. 13
. Retrieved
August 26,
2020
.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
(in German).
GfK Entertainment charts
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Archivum ? Slagerlistak ? MAHASZ"
(in Hungarian).
Single (track) Top 40 lista
. Magyar Hanglemezkiadok Szovetsege. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
- ^
"
The Irish Charts ? Search Results ? Faint"
.
Irish Singles Chart
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
.
Top Digital Download
. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Nederlandse Top 40 ? week 27, 2003
" (in Dutch).
Dutch Top 40
. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
(in Dutch).
Single Top 100
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"Linkin Park anda popular"
.
El Siglo de Torreon
. August 24, 2003.
Archived
from the original on May 4, 2023
. Retrieved
May 4,
2023
.
- ^
"Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100"
.
Official Charts Company
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
Canciones Top 50
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
.
Singles Top 100
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
Linkin Park ? Faint"
.
Swiss Singles Chart
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"Official Singles Chart Top 100"
.
Official Charts Company
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40"
.
Official Charts Company
. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- ^
"Linkin Park Chart History (Hot 100)"
.
Billboard
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"Linkin Park Chart History (Alternative Airplay)"
.
Billboard
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"Linkin Park Chart History (Mainstream Rock)"
.
Billboard
. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^
"
?NS IFPI"
(in Czech). Hitparada ? Digital Top 100 Oficialni. IFPI Czech Republic.
Note: Change the chart to CZ ? SINGLES DIGITAL ? TOP 100 and insert 201730 into search
. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
- ^
"
?NS IFPI"
(in Slovak). Hitparada ? Singles Digital Top 100 Oficialna. IFPI Czech Republic.
Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201730 into search
. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
- ^
"Linkin Park Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)"
.
Billboard
. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
- ^
"Italian single certifications ? Linkin Park ? Faint"
(in Italian).
Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana
. Retrieved
July 12,
2021
.
- ^
"Linkin Park - Faint"
.
El portal de Musica
.
Productores de Musica de Espana
. Retrieved
February 14,
2024
.
- ^
"British single certifications ? Linkin Park ? Faint"
.
British Phonographic Industry
. Retrieved
May 17,
2024
.
- ^
"American single certifications ? Linkin Park ? Faint"
.
Recording Industry Association of America
.
External links
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