Mindless Faith

In 1996, Mindless Faith began their pursuit of industrial/EBM excellence with their debut album, "The Silence." Two albums later, the release of 2004's "Momentum" saw them expanding upon that promise, garnering rave reviews and venturing into more dancefloor oriented territory. They even recently received the Trent Reznor seal of approval, winning accolades with their remix of nine inch nails' "Only."

At present, the band hopes to continue this forward push, as they work on a new release...but first they have to survive seven weeks on the road with PIG.

Rock Star Journalism: Tell me a little about the origin of Mindless Faith. How did the band first come together?

Jason: The doctors told Chris [Exeris] he should find a hobby -- so, music seemed to work. And then he tricked me into doing it with him. He was graduating from college, and I was dropping out, so the timing worked out. We played in some old-school punk bands, but we began experimenting with electronics, and then it just materialized.

RSJ: Did you know from the outset what sound you wanted to achieve?

Jason: Yeah, I think we had a somewhat defined idea of the sound we were going for -- intense and infectious, dark and electronic, abrasive guitars, lots of dynamics -- and I think that's what we've achieved.

RSJ: Your band members are now based out of two different areas; does this make things difficult?

Exeris: Traveling from NYC to DC once or twice every month does get old.

Jason: But maybe a safe distance is necessary -- growing up as brothers, we used to beat the shit out of each other. You'd think we'd be over that by now, but I can be a real douche bag.

Exeris: Yeah, but now we're going to be living on a bus together for seven weeks!

RSJ: Having been around for quite some time now, do you think your sound has changed a great deal since you started?

Jason: I think the edges are sharper and the production is tighter, but I don't know that its changed a great deal. On the other hand, I'm always moving forward with new material, so I might not have a good sense for it.

Exeris: Well, our sound has definitely gotten more dancefloor oriented over the years. But we've managed to still keep rock elements while incorporating new ones.

RSJ: One of your songs, "Singular," is featured in Xbox 360 game PGR 3. How did this come about?

Exeris: Microsoft contacted our European label, Dependent Records, and they hooked it up. A big thanks goes to them for that.

RSJ: Tell me about entering the nine inch nails "Only" remix contest, which you won in four cities. Did Trent Reznor have anything interesting to say about your work?

Jason: He was impressed -- he told us it was better than some remixes he has paid for. I think part of him got sick of seeing us in four cities straight, but he was always very cool with us.

RSJ: What do you think made your remix stand out from others?

Jason: I haven't heard a lot of others, so that's hard to know. We pushed up the BPMs, added additional elements of our own and just took it in a direction that others didn't seem to go. We dropped the funk and made it more aggressive.

RSJ: You've done shows with numerous bands in the industrial community; was any tour particularly memorable?

Jason: Well, I'll never forget those two weeks opening for Kenny Loggins -- "Take a ride into the Danger Zone" -- that guy can fucking rock!

RSJ: How did you get involved with Raymond Watts for the upcoming Pig tour?

Jason: We slipped him a roofie and had him sign some paperwork. By the time he came to, it was too late...seven weeks on a bus around the US with Mindless Faith.

RSJ: You've been featured in numerous European magazines and been on the German charts. Have you done any touring overseas?

Jason: So far, just the US. Hopefully, we'll follow with a European tour soon.

RSJ: You've mentioned recently completing some work with your other bands, Grains of Sound and Low Earth Orbit. How do these bands differ from the Mindless Faith sound?

Jason: The other projects are a lot more tripped-out, deep and droning. If Mindless Faith is a punch in the face, Grains of Sound and Low Earth Orbit would be a morphine bubble bath.

RSJ: Another of your projects involves doing visual projection work. Can you tell me a little about what you do as VJ Exeris?

Exeris: Well, I've been mixing and manipulating video live since the beginning of 2000. In 2004, after losing my activist job, I started doing it as a day job. Of course this meant no longer limiting myself to music I liked. So the music isn't always my thing (like hip hop), and I often set up all the projectors, screens and cables, so it can mean it's a day and night job, but I guess I like the challenge. I used to always do live mixes that we would project live at Mindless Faith shows. Unfortunately, it looks like I won't get any done for the PIG tour, but video mixes are available at vjexeris.com.

RSJ: Your last album, "Momentum," was released in 2004; have you started work on a new Mindless Faith album yet?

Jason: Yes we have. And it...is...slamming! Definitely our best work yet. We were hoping to complete it before hitting the road with PIG, but there's still some work to be done. So, we'll probably be mixing on the road.

RSJ: You've mentioned that there was somewhat of a concept to "Momentum." Do you think there will be a theme to the next album?

Jason: We didn't intend it, but it's coming together as if we have.

RSJ: What would you most like to achieve with Mindless Faith in the future?

Jason: Same shit, just more of it.