bio // by jonathan bond
what�s the format?

or play five shows, record one song, sign to elektra.

born february 2002, nate ruess and sam means are the format, veterans of pop-punk bands that played endlessly to little reward. the young men, 20 and 22 respectively, were bored with the limits of the genre. while still playing together in said punk bands, they began to collaborate on music for fun; an outlet for their more pop oriented ideas. writing in secret, the two stumbled onto something viable: smart pop music based on a cocktail of disparate flavors. first, put some beatles in, certainly won�t hurt anything. add some cat stevens/james taylor singer songwriter stylings. throw in a musical backdrop proud of it�s eighties twinge: big fat drum machines, acoustic guitars, synths, maybe a handclap.

while no one was looking, the duo wrote and recorded a song based on this template. their first studio effort bore ambrosia with the cleverly titled "the first single", a masterful pop song. blissed-out, hook-laden and brain stem penetrating, it is centered around acoustic guitar, ruess' multilayered high/low chorus-treated harmonies, and simple drum machine beats. it summons the better moments of squeeze, with high energy and crisp vocals, colored by subtle nods to skylarking-era xtc and other forgotten '80s pop.

for the hell of it ruess and means shopped the song to indie labels, and the response was almost immediate. though the format had only recorded one song and never played live, people began to ask for more music. so they wrote some more songs.

having learned what they didn�t want to do by playing and watching other bands, they followed �the first single� with more strong material, recorded in a hurry and self-released an ep called uh, �ep�. at the same time the duo pieced together a live band and prepared a live set.

enter phoenix radio station the edge, and the scout.net, an a&r; tip sheet on the web. the edge began playing the song in daily rotation, based on huge listener response. the scout.net had a glowing report about the boys as well as a link to �the first single� and suddenly the format was something formidable -- a-n unknown quantity with a big buzz based on four minutes of music. the edge loved the band so much that the format�s fourth real show was playing the main-stage of the edgefest at the peoria sports complex, a large outdoor venue that hosts better national acts. the combination of airplay and the few live shows created a near instant local awareness and the ep began selling out at arizona music chain zia records. topping both the local and national release charts for a time at the tempe location, the format are nearly out of their first pressing of �ep�. only a few years ago childhood friends means and ruess played a high school assembly, now major labels were beckoning. the labels started calling around the time of the edge-fest, seemingly a result of the combination of internet presence, local airplay and sales. after discussions with interested parties the band felt elektra was their best home, and is eager to get in the studio and record a full length in january, at that time the band will still be under a year of age.

so that is what brings the format to your venue, and your town. please don�t misread this story. these guys, though young, have been playing and paying attention to music for a long time, and the music