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The Format is still going strong


The Format is not a new name on ASU's campus.

The band, being based out of Arizona, has more or less become an institution here in the desert.

We've watched Sam Means and Nate Reuss go through several prior bands to playing covers of Beatles songs at coffee shops and finally selling out shows locally for years.

We've seen them get signed, then dropped, then signed ... and dropped again from two different labels (now collectively known as WEA, or Warner Elektra Atlantic).

And now two EP's, one full-length album and three years later, Arizona's golden boys delivered their latest full length album, "Dog Problems," this July.

For a band that has incurred such change in their professional lives, it's no surprise that they would manage to evolve in the actual music as well.

"Dog Problems" is the quintessential sophomore album, featuring more elements than prior releases, grittier lyrics, more advanced song structure and, best of all, the lack of major-label polish. The band released the album themselves on The Vanity Label, giving them the freedom not only in composition, but also in distribution, which included releasing the album online over a month before the street date.

In the first single, "The Compromise," a tongue-in-cheek lash at their previous label(s), Reuss proclaims, "Don't call it a sophomore slump."

With the kind of history this band has and the fact that they remain constant and can still create a catchy and well-written album, one would be hard pressed to find any kind of "slump" in their careers anytime soon.

Reach the reporter at Ashley.Harris@asu.edu.


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