"Let’s tune out by turning on the radio." - The Format
Tune out is right, as today’s radio tends to be good for little more than background noise humming along to help maintain one’s sanity. White noise, if you will. Fuzz. With the revolving door and general mediocrity of America’s Top 40, it’s a wonder that Ryan Seacrest is able to look himself in the mirror at night after promoting that crap to the public. I suppose making a shit-ton of money by doing absolutely nothing might make it easier, but if that was my job I might take a cue from The Format and ask you to "just tie the rope, now kick the chair". Ok, perhaps I’m being a little over-dramatic, but with artists like Modest Mouse and The Hush Sound making music of a quality that Hilary Duff couldn’t make even if the almighty music God took an inspirational crap on her blonde/black cranium, you can’t fault me for making a point. Which leads me of course to The Format. Where do Nate Ruess and Sam Means fit into all of this? It is my strong belief that they are the undefined, the in-between, a band that is floating in a constant state of juxtaposition with itself. With intelligent compositions that completely obliterate the songwriter’s rules of conduct such as "Dog Problems" and three chord, "ready for radio" songs such as "Oceans", The Format has found a way to cross the boundary between hardcore music aficionado and casual radio drone. In other words, The Format are the perfect example of how to do things right the first (Interventions and Lullabies), second (Snails EP) and third (Dog Problems) times.
When speaking with Nate, I came to realize just how self-aware he and Sam are. I had barely asked the question when he tiptoed the line between MySpace pioneer and disgusted listener, "Yeah that’s my biggest problem with it [the influx of garbage] but I guess you can’t necessarily bite the hand that feeds." Nate’s comment makes perfect sense even in its contradiction. While there is an obscene amount of trash being distributed on the online "airwaves" through the likes of overly viral networking sites (MySpace, Facebook etc.), there is also quite a bit of quality out there that might have never been heard if it wasn’t for said websites. Hell, even PopZap! has a MySpace page. If you want exposure, viral marketing is the quickest and easiest way to get it. This then begs the question, is the end worth the means? This seemingly necessary evil didn’t exist ten years ago, yet some of the best music out there is several decades old. I’ve always been one for progress and technology, but I can’t help but feel as though there is something missing when an artist hits it big in the online arena. As Nate so clearly defined it, "Back in the day if you wanted to be heard you pretty much just had to hone your craft and become really good at what you were doing before anyone heard anything about it." What happened to the stories of bands playing in smoky, run down bars to a handful of people that wanted nothing to do with them? What happened to the artist that sends their demo tape to a hundred labels, only to be rejected a hundred times? What has happened to music? It has evolved. It has devolved. Whatever your stance is, for better or for worse, this is the world that we now live in.
While Nate admitted he may be less than social, ("because Sam and I in general were sort of nerds growing up and antisocial"), he is very talkative and open, so long as he is comfortable. When I arrived at their big blue bus, Sam (clean-shaven - gasp!) greeted me at the door and walked me to the back to see Nate. As I walked past their band, I saw that everyone was either on a laptop, listening to music through headphones or doing both. It was painfully obvious that everyone was tired and just trying to relax. I’ve stressed this before, but it seems that sometimes we forget that musicians are people too. They are trapped in a bus for months at a time arriving at one location in the morning, performing at night, hitting the road immediately after, and doing the drill all over again the next day. Wash, rinse, repeat. When I entered the padded room with a horseshoe bench I found Nate sitting by the window, intently watching a video of Jeff Tweedy on a wall-mounted plasma television. He greeted me with a warm smile and a handshake, then offered me a drink. Sitting there looking at a man responsible for many of my favorite songs and memories, and realizing that he, just as the rest of his band mates, had heavy bags under his eyes and a look of sullen distress on his face, I couldn’t help but feel a guilty sense of gratitude. Not just because I was the one sitting here with him while three of my friends had to wait on the stairs in an arena playing Disney On Ice. Not just because thousands of fans would commit many a heinous act to be in my position but for a minute, let alone the hour that I was granted. I felt a sense of gratitude because I now realized what our favorite artists put themselves through just to make a song that might impact us, even in the slightest. That day I asked myself, when have I sacrificed my time and effort so willingly for others? When will I? Will I? That answer is up for debate, but on behalf of the people that are doing this day in and day out, I ask a favor. The next time you go to a show and want someone’s autograph or a photo with them, only to have your request denied, before you start shouting bloody murder consider this; while you may have waited a few hours in line, while you may have spent your life savings for this day, that artist you are feeling such bitterness and resentment towards has travelled for months, years even, through many trials and tribulations, to perform for you. The least we can do to show our gratitude is appreciate that fact.
While I could go on for days I think I’ve made myself clear. Nate has been open with his fans. He has told us things about his personal life that probably eat away at his heart every time he mentions them. He has shared stories and thoughts that many people wouldn’t tell even their closest friends. The Format is a band built on real morals with real values. They care about their fans, probably more than most bands, and they show their appreciation by making some of the finest damn music being produced today. It’s artists like this that make my job so easy, because as long as they exist, I’ll never stop listening, reading or writing. Thank you Nate, thank you The Format, for everything.
