A prime house-pop group and consistent club act, Faithless is at its core a duo of producers Rollo and Sister Bliss. Before the group officially came together in 1995, Rollo had produced a club hit ("Don't You Want Me" as Felix in 1992), plus an album for Kristine W. and remixes for the Pet Shop Boys, Björk, and Simply Red. Sister Bliss, a piano and violin prodigy from the age of five, converted to acid house in 1987, and quickly became one of the U.K.'s best house DJs, also recording several singles as herself. Though the two had begun producing together as early as 1993, Faithless became a stable quartet two years later with the addition of vocalists Jamie Catto (previously in the Big Truth Band) and Maxi Jazz (from the Soul Food Cafe Band).

Faithless reached worldwide status quickly, with the 1994 singles "Salva Mea" (one of the biggest dance hits of the year), "Insomnia," and "Reverence." The debut Faithless album, also titled Reverence, appeared in late 1996 on Rollo's Cheeky Records, and was picked up for distribution by Arista the next year. Sunday 8pm followed in 1998, reaching number ten in Britain and lofting several of its club hits into the pop charts, including "Bring My Family Back," "Take the Long Way Home," and the Top Ten "God Is a DJ." (It was reissued the following year with a collection of remixes titled Saturday 3am.) A comedown mix album, Back to Mine, appeared in early 2001, just before Faithless released Outrospective, album number three, in June. Sparked by a pair of British hits, "We Come 1" and "One Step Too Far" (the latter featuring Dido on vocals), Outrospective charted across Europe and was certified platinum.

In 2004, the band released the quieter than usual No Roots, with a new member (LSK) adding vocals. Two years later Faithless returned with 2006's To All New Arrivals. Featuring guest vocals from Robert Smith and Cat Power, the album failed to make the British Top Ten unlike their previous album. The Dance saw Faithless make a comeback in 2010, but even with a high-profile show at that year's Glastonbury Festival, the album became their last. In 2011, Maxi Jazz announced via their website that the band would come to an end. Faithless played their final live dates at London's Brixton Academy in April 2011.

Within just a few years, however, the band made a comeback, playing several open-air venues during the summer of 2015 and releasing a remix album, Faithless 2.0, in September. The album included reworkings by a host of the biggest names in dance music, including Avicii, Tiësto, Rudimental, Armin Van Buuren, Eric Prydz, Above & Beyond, and Booka Shade. It also included several new originals from the band.

John Bush
AllMusic.com