Wikipedia

Todd Fink

Todd Fink (born Todd Baechle) is an American singer, songwriter, and visual artist best known as lead vocalist of The Faint. He co-founded the Omaha group in the mid-1990s and first performed with the lineup under the name Norman Bailer. Fink has led the band across seven studio albums, including Egowerk (2019).[1][2] Outside the band he releases electronic work with Depressed Buttons and records as Closeness with Orenda Fink. He directs visual design for The Faint, including the artwork for Egowerk.[3]

Todd Fink
Born
Todd Baechle
OriginOmaha, Nebraska, U.S.
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • record producer
  • visual artist
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • synthesizer
  • keyboards
Years active1995–present
Labels
  • Saddle Creek
  • blank.wav
  • SQE Music
  • Graveface
  • Mad Decent
Spouse
​
(m. 2005)​

Career

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1995–2004: Formation and early releases

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Fink co-founded The Faint in Omaha with Clark Baechle and an early lineup that performed as Norman Bailer. The band issued Media (1998) before emphasizing electronics on Blank-Wave Arcade (1999) and Danse Macabre (2001).[2][4][5][6] Coverage of the Saddle Creek era credits Fink as the group's primary vocalist and lyricist during the stylistic shift.[7]

2004–2014: National profile

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The Faint issued Wet from Birth (2004) through Saddle Creek, then self-released Fasciinatiion (2008) on the band's blank.wav imprint.[8][9] Doom Abuse arrived in 2014 on SQE Music and later returned to Saddle Creek for a 2024 reissue.[10]

During this span Fink, Clark Baechle, and Jacob Thiele launched the DJ and production project Depressed Buttons and released the QWERTY EP on Diplo's Mad Decent label in 2010.[11][12]

2017–present: Closeness and later work

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With Orenda Fink he formed Closeness and released the six-track EP Personality Therapy through Graveface in 2017.[13][14] The Faint returned with Egowerk (2019), which features Fink's artwork.[1][3] In 2024 and 2025 he participated in anniversary reissue projects centered on Blank-Wave Arcade and Wet from Birth.[15][16]

Other activity

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Fink briefly played bass in Commander Venus in the late 1990s during the cycle surrounding the band's second album, a stint noted in label materials.[17] Interviews and profiles cite him as The Faint's creative lead and primary voice when discussing the group's aesthetics and production approach.[7][18]

Personal life

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Fink married musician Orenda Fink in 2005 and adopted her surname.[19]

Discography

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With the Faint (studio albums)

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Title Year Label Notes
Media [5] 1998 Saddle Creek (LBJ-21) Debut album.
Blank-Wave Arcade [4] 1999 Saddle Creek (LBJ-28)
Danse Macabre [6] 2001 Saddle Creek Original release 2001, multiple reissues including deluxe editions.
Wet from Birth [8] 2004 Saddle Creek (LBJ-67)
Fasciinatiion [9] 2008 blank.wav Self-released by the band.
Doom Abuse [10] 2014 SQE Music Reissued by Saddle Creek in 2024.
Egowerk [1] 2019 Saddle Creek (LBJ-279)

With Closeness

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Title Type Year Label
Personality Therapy EP 2017 Graveface[13][14]

With Depressed Buttons

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Title Type Year Label
QWERTY EP 2010 Mad Decent[11][12]

Selected interviews and profiles

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  • Fink on stylistic influences behind Blank-Wave Arcade (BrooklynVegan, 2025).[20]
  • Album-cycle interview for Egowerk (FLOOD, 2019).[7]
  • 25-year retrospective interview on Blank-Wave Arcade (Boing Boing, 2024).[16]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 "Egowerk". Saddle Creek. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  2. 1 2 "The Faint Reissues: Todd Fink Interview". Stereogum. March 13, 2025. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Egowerk". Bandcamp. The Faint/Saddle Creek. March 15, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  4. 1 2 "Blank-Wave Arcade". Saddle Creek. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Media". Saddle Creek. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  6. 1 2 "Danse Macabre". Saddle Creek. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 "The Faint Will Always Be Cut from the Saddle Creek Cloth". FLOOD Magazine. March 13, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  8. 1 2 "Wet from Birth". Saddle Creek. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  9. 1 2 "Fasciinatiion". Bandcamp. The Faint/blank.wav. August 5, 2008. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  10. 1 2 "Doom Abuse". Saddle Creek. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  11. 1 2 Phillips, Amy (November 10, 2010). ""Ow!"". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  12. 1 2 "When "Depressed" Means Overstimulated: Q&A with Todd Fink of Depressed Buttons". Vice. May 2011. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  13. 1 2 "Closeness = Todd Fink from The Faint + Orenda Fink from Azure Ray (listen)". BrooklynVegan. February 6, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  14. 1 2 "Closeness – "More Romantic"". Stereogum. January 11, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  15. ↑ "The Faint – Blank-Wave Arcade & Wet from Birth Deluxe Editions Announced". Saddle Creek. January 28, 2025. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  16. 1 2 "The Faint: 25 years of Blank-Wave Arcade (Todd Fink interview)". Boing Boing. October 29, 2024. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Commander Venus". Ghostmeat Records. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  18. ↑ "Q&A with The Faint". Anthem. November 16, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  19. ↑ "Why some men take their wives' last names". The Christian Science Monitor. June 9, 2015. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  20. ↑ "The Faint's Todd Fink tells us how The Cure, DEVO, The Normal and more influenced their 1999 album Blank-Wave Arcade". BrooklynVegan. March 14, 2025. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
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