Fun

Lead singer Nate Ruess at Electric Ballroom, Camden, London.
Background information
Origin New York City, New York, U.S.
Genres indie pop, alternative rock, power pop[1]
Years active 2008–present
Labels Fueled by Ramen Records/Nettwerk Records (US)
Hassle Records (UK)
Associated acts The Format, Steel Train, Anathallo
Website ournameisFun.com
Members
Nate Ruess
Andrew Dost
Jack Antonoff

Fun (often stylized as fun.) is an American alternative rock band based in New York City that was formed by Nate Ruess, formerly of The Format. After the 2008 breakup of The Format, Ruess formed Fun with Andrew Dost and Jack Antonoff of Anathallo and Steel Train respectively.[2] Fun has released two albums: their debut Aim and Ignite in 2009 and their latest Some Nights in February 2012.

The band is best known for its hit single "We Are Young" featuring Janelle Monáe. "We Are Young" reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and Digital Songs charts, becoming the first alternative song to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart since Coldplay's "Viva la Vida" in 2008. It also peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart.

Contents

History [link]

2007–2008: Career beginning and formation [link]

The Format split in February 2008. Immediately afterward Nate Ruess asked Andrew Dost and Jack Antonoff to join his new project. Dost had toured with The Format and provided various instrumentation. Ruess met Antonoff after The Format toured with Steel Train.[3] The three began working together in New Jersey within a week. Ruess sang melodies while the other two provided music for them.[4] The first demo song the band recorded was "Benson Hedges," which was made available for free in Spin's September 20, 2008 article on the band.[5] Fun approached Steven McDonald, who produced The Format's album Dog Problems with Ruess, to produce their debut album. McDonald was enthusiastic about the project and stated, "I can’t believe what we’re working on here. This crushes anything I’ve ever done."[4]

[edit] 2009–2010: Aim and Ignite

Recording took place in the fall of 2008. The band's first single, "At Least I'm Not as Sad (As I Used to Be)" was made available as a free download on the band's Myspace page on April 6, 2009.[6] Aim and Ignite was released on August 25, 2009 and had positive reviews. AbsolutePunk.net's Drew Beringer praised the album, stating it was "what a pop album 'should' sound like" and "the most essential pop album of 2009."[7] Allmusic called the album "progressive, but in the best possible way" and admired Ruess's lyrics for "investigating the larger truths of life...with a witty approach that keeps the songs bubbling merrily along on a positive note".[8] Dave de Sylvia of Sputnikmusic wrote, "Aim and Ignite isn’t the most consistent pop album around," but he ultimately commended the album as "a superbly mixed and arranged album made by musicians who clearly understand the limits and potential of pop music".[9] Estella Hung of PopMatters was less impressed with the album. She praised songs "Be Calm" and "The Gambler", but criticized the lyrics and production of the album's early tracks. Hung concluded that while Aim and Ignite is "pretty original to say the least", it "fails to live up to the Format’s last outing."[10] Popdose's Ken Shane called the album "an interesting and unusual listen." Shane applauded the album's songwriting and said "many of the songs are really good," but he objected to the "cute" production, desiring to hear the band "in a more stripped-down form." He ended his review with: "I have a similar problem with Dr. Dog, a band that was recommended to me by a number of people. I think much of their recorded work is too fussed over, but when I saw them live and their sound was more stripped down out of necessity, emphasizing their powerful songwriting, I thought they were wonderful. Perhaps the same fate awaits me with Fun."[11] The album reached number 26 on Sputnikmusic's top 50 albums of 2009. The album peaked at 71 on the US album charts.

Fun began its first North American tour on November 8, 2008 with Jack's Mannequin.[12] The debut album Aim and Ignite was released on August 25, 2009.[13] In reviewing the album, The Washington Post called some of the arrangements "theatrical, much like those on Panic! at the Disco's 2005 debut".[14] In February 2010, Fun supported Jack's Mannequin on their headline tour, along with Vedera which was followed by their first UK appearances in March. Their current touring band also includes Will Noon, Rob Kroehler, Emily Moore, Nate Harold, and Jon "Jonny Thunder" Goldstein.[15] In April 2010, Fun supported Paramore's headline tour. Other support for the tour includes Relient K and Harriet Ellis of Summer Beats.[16] The band then embarked on a full UK tour in May. On August 4, 2010, Fun announced that they had signed with label Fueled by Ramen.[17]

On August 14, 2010, it was announced via the Official Paramore Fan Club that Fun would be opening for Paramore on their November UK tour.[18] In 2010 Fun's single, "Walking the Dog," was used in a commercial for the travel site Expedia.com.[19] In 2010, Will Noon (formerly of Straylight Run) played drums with Fun on tour, according to Noon's Twitter page.[20] To celebrate the Paramore UK tour and the band’s new single ‘Walking The Dog’, Hassle Records gave away a free download of an acoustic version of the track.[21] On April 27, 2011, a video of the band performing a new song entitled "Carry On" was uploaded to YouTube.[22]

[edit] 2011–present: Some Nights

 This section is in a list format that may be better presented using prose. You can help by converting this section to prose, if appropriate. Editing help is available. (April 2012)

On May 17, 2011, the band released "C'mon" as a joint single with Panic! at the Disco, who they opened for on their 2011 Vices & Virtues Tour.

On November 7, 2011, the band announced that their next album would be titled Some Nights and released on February 21, 2012. Its first single, called "We Are Young" and featuring Janelle Monáe, has since been used in several other media including:

On December 12, 2011, the band's song "One Foot" was available for instant streaming and free download on Nylon's website.[24]

On February 13, 2012, the band released an album stream on their website along with a note from Ruess thanking fans for their ongoing support. Ruess states he is "over the moon about what you're about to hear and falling asleep knowing that as soon as I wake up, this will no longer be a dream."[25]

On March 7, 2012, Fun's single "We Are Young" reached the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This makes Fun the first multi-member rock band to have a #1 Billboard debut on the Hot 100 since Nickelback's "How You Remind Me" in December 2001/January 2002.[26] On the same day, "We Are Young" was used by Apple in a promotional video of their recent retail development in Grand Central Terminal.[27] On April 11, 2012, Billboard.com announced that Fun's "We Are Young" also made Digital Sales history. As the song was at the #1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for a sixth consecutive week, it has become the first, and at this time only, song that has ever gained 300,000+ downloads for seven weeks straight.[28]

On March 19, 2012, Fun was announced as a performing band at the Bonnaroo 2012 music festival.

On June 3, 2012, Fun will perform "We Are Young" at the 2012 MTV Movie Awards.

"We Are Young" peaked at number 1 on May 27, 2012 in the UK.

Band members [link]

Current members
Current touring members
  • Nate Harold – bass guitar, vocals, sampler (2009–present)
  • Emily Moore – guitars, vocals, keyboards, saxophone (2009–present)
  • Will Noon – drums (2010–present)


Former touring members
  • Jon Goldstein – drums (2008–2010)
  • Rob Kroehler – guitar (2008–2010)
  • Mike Schey - guitar (March 2010-May 2010)
  • Michael Newsted (The Soil & The Sun) – bass guitar (2010)
  • Maggie Malyn – violin (2008)
  • Evan Winiker – bass guitar (2011)
  • Ryan Lallier – guitar (2010–2011)

Discography [link]

Main article: Fun discography
Studio albums

References [link]

  1. ^ Chris DeVille (April 18, 2012). "Feature: fun. at LC Pavilion". Columbus Alive. The Columbus Dispatch. https://www.columbusalive.com/content/stories/2012/04/19/feature-fun--at-lc-pavilion.html. Retrieved 27 April 2012. "Maybe you’ve been following fun.’s emo-fried, Queen-inspired power-pop since the trio brought together members of The Format, Steel Train and Anathallo in 2008. If so, you probably heard “We Are Young” when the band released it last September. Perhaps you discovered the song when the “Glee” cast performed it in December." 
  2. ^ Martin, Hannah (September 15, 2009). "A new dynamic to Fun: Nate Ruess", Boston Globe, p. G3.
  3. ^ Introducing: Fun.. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
  4. ^ a b "About - Fun.". https://ournameisFun.com/about. Retrieved November 24, 2009. 
  5. ^ Kiser, Matt. "Members of the Format, Steel Train, Anathallo Unite as Fun.", Spin, 2008-08-20. Retrieved 2008-09-19.
  6. ^ "Dear You: Letter from Nate + new song!". Fun.'s MySpace Blog. April 6, 2009. https://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=402387619&blogId=481510377. Retrieved November 25, 2009. 
  7. ^ Beringer, Drew (25 July 2009). "Fun. - Aim & Ignite - Album Review". AbsolutePunk.net. https://www.absolutepunk.net/showthread.php?t=1215392. Retrieved 23 November 2009. 
  8. ^ Poet, J.. "allmusic ((( Aim and Ignite > Review )))". Allmusic. https://www.allmusic.com/album/r1621278/review. Retrieved 26 February 2010. 
  9. ^ de Sylvia, Dave (18 August 2009). "Fun. - Aim and Ignite Review". sputnikmusic. https://www.sputnikmusic.com/album.php?albumid=39469. Retrieved 23 November 2009. 
  10. ^ Hung, Estella (18 November 2009). "Fun.: Aim and Ignite < Reviews". PopMatters. https://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/115738-Fun.-aim-and-ignite/. Retrieved 23 November 2009. 
  11. ^ Shane, Ken (27 August 2009). "CD Review: Fun., "Aim and Ignite"". Popdose. https://popdose.com/cd-review-fun-aim-and-ignite/. Retrieved 23 November 2009. 
  12. ^ Tate, Jason (November 8, 2008). "Introducing: Fun. - News Article". AbsolutePunk.net. https://www.absolutepunk.net/showthread.php?t=467591. Retrieved November 24, 2009. 
  13. ^ "Aim and Ignite is out today! Listen to a special track now". August 25, 2009. https://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=402387619&blogId=507239197. Retrieved November 23, 2009. 
  14. ^ Dunham, Nancy (September 18, 2009). "CD Review: Fun.: Aim and Ignite", The Washington Post, p. T8.
  15. ^ The Format's Ruess talks about music and Fun.. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
  16. ^ Paramore to tour US with Fun. and Relient K. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
  17. ^ "Special Letter From Nate & Live Web Chats with Fun.!". Fun.'s Website. August 4, 2010. https://ournameisFun.com/news/special-letter-nate-live-web-chars-fun-566. Retrieved August 4, 2010. 
  18. ^ Bhamra, Satvir (2010-08-14). "B.o.B and Fun. to join Paramore on UK tour". Amplified.tv. https://amplified.tv/2010/08/14/b-o-b-and-fun-to-join-paramore-on-uk-tour/. Retrieved 2011-08-13. 
  19. ^ "Expedia.com commercial featuring "Walking the Dog."!". September 4, 2010. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B5hcH8Kr4U. Retrieved September 4, 2010. 
  20. ^ willnoon. "will noon (willnoon) op Twitter". Twitter.com. https://twitter.com/willnoon/. Retrieved 2011-08-13. 
  21. ^ Bhamra, Satvir (2010-11-15). "FREE Download: ‘Walking The Dog’ (acoustic) by fun.". Amplified.tv. https://amplified.tv/2010/11/15/download-%e2%80%98walking-the-dog%e2%80%99-acoustic-by-fun-for-free/. Retrieved 2011-08-13. 
  22. ^ "Fun. - Carry On (Live @ TCNJ)". YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nLY_E0PovM. Retrieved 2011-08-13. 
  23. ^ "Chevy Sonic "Stunt Anthem"". YouTube. January 27, 2012. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuvoSw1TiJ8. Retrieved February 2, 2012. 
  24. ^ https://www.nylonmag.com/?section=article&parid=7290
  25. ^ https://www.ournameisFun.com/
  26. ^ https://www.billboard.com/news/fun-tastic-we-are-young-tops-hot-100-1006389352.story#/news/fun-tastic-we-are-young-tops-hot-100-1006389352.story
  27. ^ https://events.apple.com.edgesuite.net/123pibhargjknawdconwecown/event/index.html
  28. ^ https://www.billboard.com/charts#/news/hot-100-fun-makes-digital-sales-history-1006729152.story

External links [link]

Fun
  • Nate Ruess
  • Andrew Dost
  • Jack Antonoff
Studio albums
Singles
Labels
Related articles

https://wn.com/Fun_(band)

Fun (disambiguation)

Fun generally refers to recreation or entertainment.

Fun may also refer to:

Music

  • Fun (band), an American indie pop band
  • Fun Fun, a popular synth pop duo of the 1980s
  • Fun 100, a Canadian indie rock band from Abbotsford, British Columbia
  • Fun (album), an album by American musician Daniel Johnston
  • Fun?, an album by the Candyskins
  • Fun! fun! fun!, an album by Shonen Knife
  • Fun 9, 1999 album by Takako Minekawa
  • "Fun" (Da Mob song), a 1998 single
  • "Ffun", a hit song by Con Funk Shun
  • "Fun, Fun, Fun", a song by The Beach Boys
  • Fun Fun Fun Fest, a music festival held in Austin, Texas
  • Fun (Pitbull song), 2015 Pitbull song

    • Media

  • Fun (magazine), a Victorian weekly magazine
  • Fun (film), a 1994 drama film
  • F.U.N., a SpongeBob SquarePants episode, and a SpongeBob SquarePants song.
  • Fun Channel, a Middle Eastern television channel
  • Fun Radio (disambiguation), multiple radio stations
  • Little Miss Fun, a character in the children's book series Little Miss

    • Transportation

  • Airborne Fun, a series of Australian high-wing, single and two-place hang gliders, designed and produced by Airborne Windsports
    • Read more
    This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - https://wn.com/Fun_(disambiguation)

    Fun (magazine)

    Fun was a Victorian weekly magazine, first published on 21 September 1861. The magazine was founded by the actor and playwright H. J. Byron in competition with Punch magazine.

    Description

    Like Punch, the journal published satiric verse and parodies, as well as political and literary criticism, sports and travel information. These were often illustrated or accompanied by topical cartoons (often of a political nature). The Punch mascot, Mr. Punch and his dog Toby were lampooned by Fun's jester, Mr. Fun, and his cat. The magazine was aimed at a well educated readership interested in politics, literature, and theatre.

    Fun was sold for a penny and was sometimes characterised as a 'poor man's Punch'. Thackeray called it "Funch".Fun silenced its critics by publishing lively fare, whereas Punch was criticised as dull and tired. One area in which Fun clearly bested its rival was in its close connection to popular theatre.

    Read more
    This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - https://wn.com/Fun_(magazine)

    Jabberwocky

    "Jabberwocky" is a nonsense poem written by Lewis Carroll and included in his 1871 novel Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There, a sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The book tells of Alice's adventures within the back-to-front world of a looking glass.

    In an early scene in which she first encounters the chess piece characters White King and White Queen, Alice finds a book written in a seemingly unintelligible language. Realising that she is travelling through an inverted world, she recognises that the verses on the pages are written in mirror-writing. She holds a mirror to one of the poems, and reads the reflected verse of "Jabberwocky". She finds the nonsense verse as puzzling as the odd land she has passed into, later revealed as a dreamscape.

    "Jabberwocky" is considered one of the greatest nonsense poems written in English. Its playful, whimsical language has given English nonsense words and neologisms such as "galumphing" and "chortle".

    Origin and publication

    Read more
    This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - https://wn.com/Jabberwocky

    Jabberwocky (card game)

    Jabberwocky is a card game of the trick-taking variety, played by 3 to 5 players with a standard deck of cards and pencil and paper for scoring.

    Its object is to bet the number of tricks one is estimating to make and to fulfill this bet (which scores a point). The player who fulfills the most bets after 13 turns wins the game, and more than one player may tie it.

    It may have originated on the Island of Hawaiʻi in the early 1980s. (This game was also played in Austria at about the same time).

    Dealing

    At the start of the first round, the dealer gives three cards to each player. The number of cards increases by one each round until nine cards are dealt. After that, the number of cards dealt decreases by one each round. After the end of the 13th round, when three cards are dealt again, the game ends.

    Once the cards have been dealt to the players, the dealer turns over the top card of the remainder of the deck. The suit of that card is the trump suit, and that card remains face-up during the round.

    Read more
    This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - https://wn.com/Jabberwocky_(card_game)

    Jabberwocky (TV series)

    Jabberwocky was a daily children's TV show designed for 5-10 year-olds that eventually went into national syndication. The original series ran Monday through Friday for over two seasons, from 1972 to 1974, on WCVB in Boston; the nationally syndicated version ran weekly and was rerun in the wee hours of Saturday mornings by many TV stations up until the 1990s.

    Synopsis & History

    Created and videotaped by WCVB-TV Channel 5 Boston, Jabberwocky featured real actors and puppets and various interstitial cartoons. The "show within a show" concept featured actress JoBeth Williams—in one of her earliest roles—and actor Tucker Smallwood as the "lead performer" and "director" respectively of a children's show. The actress and director were played by Joanne Sopko and Carl Thoma in the first season. Harvard professor and psychologist Jerome Kagan was an advisor to the program.

    The friendly antagonist in most episodes was puppet character Dirty Frank, who popped up from whatever packing crate was convenient. As a representative alter-ego for children, Dirty Frank's inquisitive nature and his sloppy behavior drove the plot of most episodes.

    Read more
    This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - https://wn.com/Jabberwocky_(TV_series)

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