I am so glad they're back and it's great to hear Nate on something again. The first third to half of the album in the melodies and instrumentation sounded a little...dated. Like they were written in those early 2010s. Shot in the Dark felt very clap-hey era and I couldn't get that "we will never die" song out of my mind lol. the last three songs are great, though.
spun this a couple of times yesterday, relieved that i really like it. the first half is particularly strong
I liked my first listen. The Format is a band I’ve always enjoyed, but they were never a favorite of mine. So I’m not coming into this with a ton of nostalgia. One thing that has always stood out to me with Nate’s projects is how confident his songs are. Most bands have a few records where they are finding their footing and the songs are awkward or unsure. I feel like Nate just emerged fully formed. My debate now is whether I want to own this on vinyl.
Dog Problems is probably my favorite album of all time, so my first listen of this carried the impossible burden of finally getting a follow up 18 years later. Now that I’ve sat with it for multiple listens it’s only continuing to grow on me.
Definitely agree with the sentiment that this album gets better and better with each listen. I think I’m hooked.
I enjoyed this on the car ride to work this morning but listening with my headphones for the first time tonight really revealed how great this is. The songwriting is just so strong throughout. Getting a new Format album that can hold up to the rest of their catalog is a gift I never expected to receive. Also how has Nate’s voice not aged at all?
Right Where I Belong is easily my favorite so far. The first time I heard it this morning I thought instantly this is going to be a classic Format song. Lyrics are so good.
Prevailing thought after my first listen - Nate sounds absolutely amazing on this record. Like wow. Cannot wait to give this another listen in the morning.
this is a little uneven, I think I could do without Shot in the Dark and Right Where I Belong in particular, but there's a lot of good here.
To the contrary, I think it’s all good and if I had to choose a least favorite it would probably be Back to Life, but even that’s solid, it just has the misfortune of following the best song on the record. I think if I was asked to complain about one thing, it would be that the album could be more varied, particularly instrumentally, but I respect that this is the sound they wanted to hone in on and I think it works.
Those are two of the best for me. This is up there too. I think the title track is my least favourite. I just don't really like the chorus and find the song too repetitive. Even that's good though. I think it's a pretty consistently great record.
On RED I referred to aim & ignite as my favorite nate project and someone quoted me to say now they’re horrified to listen to this new one. If that was one of you, okay, but also lol at caring about someone’s opinion on albums that came out like two decades ago
Record is fine. It lacks a little bit of what makes The Format special. It’s a very straight forward / polished sound. I was hoping for a bit more, but it’s fine.