Fun Maintain Their Flair for the Dramatic

Posted on Feb 1st 2010 3:00PM by Jason S Lipshutz
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It wouldn't be a mistake to describe the music of Fun as theatrical in nature. Given that the trio's multi-instrumentalist Andrew Dost once penned an entire musical loosely based on the tale of Christopher Columbus (titled, of course, 'Columbus!'), the band's penchant for show-tune-influenced indie rock makes a little more sense.

"I started writing it in college, and returned to it after leaving [former band] Anathallo," Dost tells Spinner of the musical, which was released in 2008. "I love musical theater and have always had a tendency toward the over-the-top."

'Aim and Ignite,' the debut album of Fun released last August via Nettwerk Records, lives up to the band's name with elaborate arrangements and heart-on-sleeve lyrics. Comprised of the Format's Nate Ruess, Anathallo's Dost and Steel Train's Jack Antonoff, the trio formed in early 2008 immediately after Ruess' former band decided to split up. Ruess wasted little time mourning the demise of his longtime group before calling Dost, who had supported the Format on tour and had been slated to work with the band on an upcoming release.

"Nate and I just want to keep moving forward with our work. He was of the mindset of, 'Okay, that's done. What's next?'" says Dost.

After recruiting Antonoff to play guitar, the trio holed up in his parents' New Jersey home and began working on demos, which Dost says were train wrecks early on.

"There was this mild tension because we just didn't know each other musically yet," says Dost. "We developed a method of leaving each other alone and stepping on each other's ideas when necessary, and we ended up having unbelievable trust between us."

The band headed to Los Angeles in August 2008 to record 'Aim and Ignite' at Kingsize Soundlabs studio and later at producer Steven McDonald's practice space. Tracks like the rollicking 'All the Pretty Girls' and breezy jam 'Walking the Dog' gain their momentum from Ruess' spunky vocals and Dost's instrumental work, which included everything from trumpet to glockenspiel to banging on a bottle of Jack Daniel's with a yardstick.

Fun will be kicking off a tour supporting Jack's Mannequin on Feb. 5 in Seattle. Although Fun has previously played acoustic shows in support of the band, Dost doesn't think they should count as a proper introduction.

"Audiences didn't get the full idea of what we were doing," he says. "This tour is going to be more of an affirmation of our songs."