''EP'' was the first EP and first release by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

the Format The Format is an American indie rock band formed by Nate Ruess and Sam Means. Their style can be considered a mixture of indie, alternative, punk and folk music, with elements of 1960s and 1970s pop music. Though Means and Ruess are the foremost ...

. It was self-released on August 9, 2002. It was re-released on September 30, 2003 via

Western Tread Recordings Western Tread Recordings was an independent record label based in Tempe, Arizona. It was owned and operated by Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World and music-promoter Charlie Levy.''Concert Wizard Levy Marks Decade of Marquee Shows'', The Arizona Republi ...

, which is owned by Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World. The success of " The First Single" on

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

rock radio station KEDJ caught the attention of many major record labels and ultimately led to The Format signing with

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the 1 ...

. There exists a rare demo of "At the Wake," with its former title "Piano Song" this version of the songs includes a longer intro (with some extra drums) and different lyrics.

Color scheme

The original self-released version of ''EP'' had an orange color scheme, while The Western Tread re-release changes the color scheme of the artwork with each pressing. Western Tread's first pressing had a red color scheme, the second had a brown color scheme, the third had a green color scheme, and the 2016 vinyl reprinting of the EP had a salmon color scheme.

Title

The simple title of this release caused much confusion among fans, leading many to believe it was either self-titled (i.e. "''The Format''") or called "''The EP''." The correct title is simply "''EP''."

Track listing

All tracks written by Sam Means and Nate Ruess. # "The First Single" – 4:26 # "At the Wake" – 4:22 # "One Shot, Two Shots" – 3:24 # "Let's Make This Moment a Crime" – 4:26 # "Even Better Yet" – 3:43

Personnel

* Sam Means – piano, keyboards, guitars * Nate Ruess – vocals ;Other personnel * Bob Hoag – additional playing, recorded, produced, mixed and engineered * Chris Serafini – additional playing * Matt Murman – mastering

References

EP EP {{2003-rock-album-stub