The Format - Interventions and Lullabies (2003)I almost thought I'd save this until the end of this period, but putting on this album sounded really good this morning.
What is there to say about this record? I still remember when I first heard "The First Single" used as background for a segment on the TV announcements, and my classmate boasting that it was her friend's boyfriend's band. While I technically started on the EP, this record was one of those turning points in a lot of ways for me and my music.
I still remember buying this album at the old Karma Records on Thunderbird and Scottsdale Rd. (RIP) the day it came out. I had to quickly absorb it as many times as possible that night, as I was launching a new music segment on the Horizon High TV announcements. It was very lo-fi as I briefly geeked out about the band, then held up a series of photocopied pictures while playing, "Wait, Wait, Wait". I then ended the piece with,
"You should check out The Format. Why? Because it's probably better than what you're listening to."
And truthfully, it was. I had just started going to more AZ local shows and had a decent grasp of what was going on. A lot of ska bands and miscellaneous punk bands that they'd toss on national shows at The Nile. Jimmy Eat World had set the bar high for any band trying to make it from AZ and the scene lacked the infrustructure, despite the community slowly coming together. However, this record was a wake up call to me, and a lot of people, of just how much a local band can accomplish, and how great it could sound. Out of the hundreds of bands I saw come and go during my time at The Blaze, this is the one that started it all. They were the great hope of our scene.
Aside from their local impact, they made an oustanding record. I feel like I've mentioned a lot in these reviews about how "smart" a record is, but this one was probably the smartest. You can't fake melodic sensibilities like the ones on these tracks, not to mention how much Nate's voice stood out from anything else being played on the radio. The songs were lyrically brutally honest and it was yet another record you had to hear seamlessly from top to bottom. In listening again today, I'm hearing new vocal layering and certain new instrumentation, even after listening to the record probably hundreds of times.
You'd be hard pressed to find a 20-something from Phoenix who wasn't impacted by this record in some way, either when it came out or later on. I've been nervous even writing all of these thoughts down as I know that this record will mean SO much to people. Everyone identified with this music and felt proud to pass it along to their friends. It was so Arizona-centric even, that it referenced places we all knew :
"The 51 is backed up and too slow"
"Well I made my way back down to the Valley, right on past 83rd st"
"I need to get back to Tempe . . . down to the streets where we'd meet, the one's that keep me away from Glendale."
While the local scene has changed quite a bit and different genres are finding their way up, this band is still a main point of reference, even their new projects, post-2008 hiatus. I often times find myself with a constant medley of all of these songs spinning through my head. It just feels like home.
This record is amazing. It really does mean a lot to me. I remember the exact night when I first heard this record. And even thinking about this album and its songs remind me of the situation I was in and the people I was with when it was first played for me. Even now, five years later, almost every time I think about this band or hear their music, I think about that night, and those people, and it brings back a lot of memories. This is exactly what a record should do for people...
ReplyDeleteEvan Buckley