Throughout the band's existence, the duo toured and recorded with a revolving door of musicians, and as of 2007, the band consisted of guitarists Mike Schey and Mark Buzard, bassist Don Raymond, drummer Adam Boyd, and its principal members, singer Nate Ruess and multi-instrumentalist Sam Means. The band chose their name to make fun of the music industry's inclination towards a cookie-cutter "format" for a hit. Despite this critique of the music industry, the band's aptly-titled first single--"The First Single" (from their five-song debut EP on Western Tread)--became popular in the Southwest music scene. This success led to The Format's signing with Elektra Records in 2002. Their first major label release and full-length album Interventions and Lullabies was released in October 2003. However, Elektra began to fold into a merger just as the album was rolling out its promotion, leaving the band as merely an afterthought as label restructuring began. The band toured North America for about two years while making plans for a new album and waiting out industry red tape.
The Format released a second EP on Atlantic (which had absorbed much of Elektra's roster after the label folded) titled Snails in April 2005. Although the EP was not a conventional mass release, it could be purchased at any of the band's performances, from their online merch store, and on iTunes. Not long after the release of the Snails EP, The Format was dropped from Atlantic. Due to their frustrating experiences with major labels, the band chose to record and release their second full-length album Dog Problems independently on The Vanity Label. The July 11, 2006 release of Dog Problems came two months after the band released the album for download on their website, in a move to combat an early leak.
On February 4, 2008, The Format announced that they will putting the band on hiatus because of creative differences. Nate Ruess already has plans to release a solo album which is scheduled to come out later this year.
Nate Ruess, the band's singer and lyricist, left the following message on the band's website:
"We have just put out word that we will not be making a new Format album. Please understand this was a tough decision and we're both upset about it. While we accept there will be false speculation as to why, understand that Sam and I remain extremely close and in fact are still passing the twin peaks box set back and forth in an attempt to figure out who REALLY killed Laura Palmer. We also want to thank everyone with and within the Format, particularly Mike, Don, and Marko, whom without, none of this would have ever even been fully realized. We both suggest you support their musical talents and whatever they decide to do. And lastly we want to thank the fans who made this the best 5 years of our lives."
Ruess announced August 11, 2008 that he is starting a new project called fun. with Andrew Dost formerly of Anathallo and Jack Antonof of Steel Train.
The Vanity Label, an imprint of major label Nettwerk, is managed by the band.
Since the end of The Format, Sam has continued designing merchandise. He converted theformatmerch.com into hellomerch.com where he features his newest work.
On February 4, 2020, the band announced a return from their hiatus for a tour of special shows.
I'm Actual
The Format Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And talk about me
Talk about me, and we'll talk about me
Talk about me, and we'll only talk about me
Can we please take this hour
And talk about me
And my hatred for corporate magazines
You know they don't speak to me
I placed you on a windowsill
Cut notches up and down the door
My surprise, I woke up one morn
In our bed
In your place
Lay a note
It read:
Baby your love
It just ain't good enough
I found sunlight six hours away
You watered me down 'til I drifted abound
Somewhere far from your shade
Now I shadow my former self
Once holy, now lonely
A chest full of holes
Red wax, it paints me unclear
When the big hand strikes twelve
I disappear
And the angels are fake
They'll lie to your face
Anything to keep you away
You watered me down 'til
I drifted abound
It's time I accept the fact
That you on your back
It has buried the past
The Format's song I'm Actual is about a man who is self-centered and wants attention. He asks if he can spend the next hour talking about himself and his hatred for corporate magazines. He wants to talk about himself only and doesn't want to talk about anyone or anything else. The singer is consumed by his own ego and doesn't seem to be aware of how self-centered he appears. The song highlights how sometimes people can be consumed with their own experiences and feelings and can forget about the world around them.
The song takes an unexpected turn when the singer reveals that he had a partner who left him a note saying that his love was not good enough. The partner left him and he felt alone and empty. He compares himself to a shadow of his former self, who was once holy but now lonely. The singer feels that he has been watered down by his partner's actions, which caused him to drift away from her. He mentions that the angels are fake and will lie to your face to keep you away, which adds a pessimistic view to the song.
In conclusion, The Format's song I'm Actual discusses the idea of self-centeredness and how it can impact our relationships with others. The singer's egocentricity prevented him from seeing his partner's needs and led to their breakup. He is now alone and sad, barely a shadow of his former self.
Line by Line Meaning
Can we take the next hour
Can we please have an uninterrupted conversation for an hour
And talk about me
And focus solely on my thoughts and experiences
Talk about me, and we'll talk about me
Let's keep the topic strictly about me for the entirety of the conversation
Talk about me, and we'll only talk about me
My wish is for you to lend me your time without introducing any other topic
Can we please take this hour
May I please request an hour of undivided attention
And my hatred for corporate magazines
I detest the magazines produced by large corporations, as they fail to resonate with me
You know they don't speak to me
I have no connection to what the magazines say or convey
The irony so the won't speak with me
It's ironic, but it's almost as if the magazines purposely avoid me
I placed you on a windowsill
I gave you a prominent position in my life
Cut notches up and down the door
I engraved memorable moments on the door
My surprise, I woke up one morn
To my amazement, I woke up one morning
In our bed
To find myself in our bed
In your place
But your presence was missing
Lay a note
There was a note instead
It read:
It said:
Baby your love
Your love, sweetie,
It just ain't good enough
Is no longer sufficient for me
I found sunlight six hours away
I discovered happiness at a six-hour distance
You watered me down 'til I drifted abound
Your influence diluted my potential, and I ended up wandering aimlessly
Somewhere far from your shade
Far away from the impact of your presence
Now I shadow my former self
I am but a mere glimmer of my past self
Once holy, now lonely
I was once pure, but now I am alone
A chest full of holes
A heart full of emotional gaps
Red wax, it paints me unclear
Confusion and unclear motives now envelop me
When the big hand strikes twelve
At the stroke of midnight
I disappear
I vanish
And the angels are fake
And the heavenly beings are inauthentic
They'll lie to your face
They will deceive you with their words
Anything to keep you away
Anything to prevent you from approaching them
It's time I accept the fact
I must now acknowledge the truth
That you on your back
That our intimate moments together
It has buried the past
Has caused me to forget my past and who I used to be
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind