The antidote to apathy—Tucson-based quintet Holy Faint—mixes the extravagance of theatre with the attitude of post-punk to create a sound made for romantics, dreamers, and oddities. The unapologetically passionate.
A newly electric guitar obsessed Sophie Gibson-Rush started the project in early 2021 as a means of exploring music with a harder edge than her past experiences in folk and classical. To her, the social and political climate at the time demanded a fiercer sound. As a result, Holy Faint has aggressive, socially-conscious lyrics delivered with a melodic touch.
Holy Faint’s songs filter the catharsis of live theatre through the lens of post-punk. From the inception of the project, it was important for singer/guitarist Sophie Gibson-Rush that the band capture the heightened emotion and drama of contemporary society. Like the punk and folk movements of the past fifty years, numbness was never an option.
When Pete and Andrea Connolly (of Tucson-based folk-rock duo Birds and Arrows) joined the band in 2022, they took the project from a bedroom recording experiment—to a full-fledged ensemble. Ryan Green (Ryanhood) was enlisted as an assistant producer and multi-instrumentalist when the group entered the St. Cecilia’s studio to record the firsts tracks for their upcoming EP ‘Charisma 1’. Just ahead of their first show, Jordan Prather (Head over Heart) completed the quintet as synth and guitar player.
Their first single, “Jimmy Jolts”— a fuzzed-out, guitar heavy punk anthem—is out now on all streaming platforms.
