By Sarah Akomanyi
With the release of their debut EP, Summer Is a Curse via BMG, last year, the presence of The Faim continues to grow. They’ve been ones to watch and we see why. From creating memories in the UK and Europe, to playing hometown shows in Australia, there is more of the world for the band to see and more people to witness what The Faim have to offer. With the State of Mind World tour set for this summer, they will bring their energy, passion and new music to brand new faces around the world.
Before The Faim became who they are now, their musical inspiration played a large part in the lives of them growing up. No matter what sort of background everyone came from, the one thing that brought them together was music. From the music of bands such as Fall Out Boy and Panic At The Disco, to Metallica and ABBA, somewhere over the years and a number of line-up changes, the eclectic musical taste of Stephen Beerkens, Josh Raven, Linden Marissen and Sam Tye came together to form The Faim.
“We always try to aim for versatility and diversity in our song writing,” drummer Marissen said. “Everyone in the band has really different musical inspirations that cover a wide spread of genres. I think most of those are still there, but we’ve added more as we’ve all gotten older.”
They also learnt that “we’re all a lot busier than we used to be prior to joining the band,” Linden said. “I guess our organization skills are a lot better now.”
April 16th – Salt Lake City, UT – The Depot
Photos by Rachel Leonard
Since the release of their debut EP, Summer Is a Curse, their desire to succeed has not changed. With a name like The Faim (translated as “hunger” in French), it’s only fair to say that they are making the most out of touring the world and performing as much as they can. When anyone gets to witness these guys live, being a part of their shows is always an experience.
“We are definitely touring a lot more now,” Linden explained.
After attending shows, we all have the option of buying the band’s merchandise, for keepsake. When it comes to these guys, Linden mentions how their merchandise would be “pretty plain and mostly dark colors” and “the merchandise would come out very differently if it were catered to what we wear,” Linden said.
As they’ve already finished a huge headline tour of the U.K., Europe, and Australia, the month of May saw the band round off the second leg of the North American tour with Black Veil Brides frontman, Andy Black.
As they’ve become quite familiar with the touring lifestyle, a typical day in the life of The Faim while on tour consist of “waking up, drive to the venue, set up everything, soundcheck, play set, sell merchandise, pack up everything, leave venue,” according to Linden. When they are not on stage, “everyone does their own thing, until we have to meet back up to do band stuff, whatever that may be.
“It’s not as glamorous as you think it is, and it’s a lot of hard work,” Linden said. “But it all pays off in the end.”
May 1st – New York City, NY – The Gramercy Theatre
Photos by Sophia Ragomo
Being in a band does come with its perks, like playing at this year’s Reading and Leeds Festival for the second year in a row. Looking forward to the summer and seeing their favorite acts on stage over three days is something the group love doing when they play festivals. Being a part of a festival on this scale will be another memory that these guys will be able to share together forever. Another highlight for the band was their first headline world tour, which according to Linden was “pretty great.” The fact that they were able to play 31 shows in eight different countries is a very proud moment for them all.
Out of all the places they’ve toured so far, Linden was able to pick some of his favorite places that stood out. From Nashville (US) being a “really cool city,” to Melbourne having “great coffee [and]great beer,” to Cologne (Germany), where the Cologne Cathedral “was pretty rad” and last but not least, Manchester (UK), which has “good vibes.”
To see how far this band has come is commendable. With any industry or profession you find yourself in, there are challenges that get thrown your way and knowing how to overcome them proves so much more.
“I feel like with anything you attempt in life there are always going to be challenges and obstacles in your way,” Linden said. “We have definitely had our share, for sure.”
May 7th – Chicago, IL – Metro
Photos by Kris Lori
The more shows The Faim play as a band, the easier it may seem to pick a favorite track to perform live. For Linden, the track titled “My Heart Needs To Breathe” off of their EP stands out, as they “really rock up the song for our live shows and that version is a lot of fun to play live.”
With this being said, not everything can go as smoothly as we would all like. No matter what industry or career you find yourself in, there are going to be obstacles along the way that you aim to overcome. For this band, this came in the form of the writing and recording process of the EP. No challenge is the same.
“Every song is unique and the challenges that come with recording them are unique too,” Linden said. Despite a few struggles along the way, one thing we do know is that they “always seem to figure it out and get there in the end.”
Saying this, regardless of anything that happens, the happiness of The Faim is what is important. So what makes these guys happy?
“At the end of the day, when The Faim take their well-deserved sleep and food,” Linden said.
As 2019 has allowed the band to experience more than they could have imagined, all they ask for during the remainder of this year is that “people listen to full albums, not just singles.”
When you get the chance to witness The Faim live, you will be part of an experience that you won’t be forgetting anytime soon. Having just announced their world tour that kicks off later this year, this will be something that will happen sooner than you think. Being a part of The Faim-ily is something special.
