The Stiletto Formal was a self-proclaimed "eccentric rock and roll" band from

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

, and were one of the few rock bands featuring a

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

and other exotic instruments and effects as an integral part of their sound. In addition to these qualities and unusual time signatures, Kyle Howard's

falsetto ''Falsetto'' (, ; Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous ed ...

provided distinction in their music. Their lyrics are often constructed into a short story format. They had gained a local fanbase in Arizona and were attracting national attention after playing nationwide tours and appearing on the

Vans Warped Tour The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running touring ...

; however, band frontman Kyle Howard relocated to Los Angeles in 2009, and the group's Facebook and Myspace profiles have since been devoid of group activity. In addition to their two released EP's, ''Masochism in the Place of Romance'' and ''This Is My Boomstick'', the band has four unreleased songs, "The Everlasting Gaze" originally performed by

Smashing Pumpkins Smash may refer to: People * Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler * Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above. * DJ Smash, DJ and music producer Art, ...

two demos called "This Song Can't Be About Blowing Things Up Because Of Terrorism". and "Moonshine" as well as a song entitled "Botox in Bulk" which was never recorded. Their debut album is entitled ''¡Fiesta Fiesta Fiesta Fiesta!'', which is self-described as being "dark but still upbeat" with sound engineer Nigel Godrich (Radiohead) as sound engineer. It was released on October 21, 2008. They worked with producers Cory Spotts (

Job For A Cowboy Job for a Cowboy is an American death metal band from Glendale, Arizona. Formed in 2003, the band's debut album ''Genesis'' was released in 2007, peaking at No. 54 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and selling 13,000 copies in its first we ...

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) and

Darrell Thorp Darrell is a given name derived from an English surname, which was derived from Norman-French , originally denoting one who came from Airelle in France. There are no longer any towns in France called Airelle, but is the French word for huckleber ...

(

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...

, Outkast,

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi music, lo-fi style, and became ...

) for the album, which was released on

Eyeball Records Eyeball Records is an independent record label originally established in NYC out of Apartment 4C on 14th St at Avenue A by Alex Saavedra and Vincent Li. The label later moved to Kearny, New Jersey. Eyeball has released albums by artists such as ...

Final Lineup

*''Kyle Howard'' - Vocals, Percussion, Keyboard *''Paul Neely'' - Bass, Percussion, Keyboard *''Sunny Davis'' - Cello, Shaker *''Jimi Lamp'' - Guitar *''Pat McCarthy'' - Drums

Former members

*''Nole Kennedy'' - Drums *''Drew Domm'' - Drums *''Shelly Barnes'' - Keyboard, Vocals, Percussion *''Brady Leffler'' - Keyboard

Discography

*''Masochism in the Place of Romance EP'' (2005) *''This Is My Boomstick EP'' (2006) *''¡Fiesta Fiesta Fiesta Fiesta!'' (October 21, 2008)

Gear Used

*Kyle Howard - Korg Keyboard, Foot processor, Maracas, Cowbell, Timpanes, others *Paul Neely - MicroKorg,

Roland Roland (; frk, *Hrōþiland; lat-med, Hruodlandus or ''Rotholandus''; it, Orlando or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the ...

SP-404,

BOSS Boss may refer to: Occupations * Supervisor, often referred to as boss * Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier * Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization * Fire boss, a ...

Bass Overdrive,

Electro-Harmonix Electro-Harmonix (also commonly referred to as EHX) is a New York City-based company that makes electronic audio processors and sells rebranded vacuum tubes. The company was founded by Mike Matthews in 1968. It is best known for a series of gu ...

Big Muff Pi, Sans-Amp, others *Sunny Davis - Zeta Strados Fusion Electric Cello, Boss Digital Delay, Either a Danelectro Chorus or Octave Pedal, others *Jimi Lamp - '72 Fender Telecaster, Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi, Boss Digital Delay, ErnieBall Volume Pedal,

Ibanez is a Japanese guitar brand owned by Hoshino Gakki. Based in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan, Hoshino Gakki were one of the first Japanese musical instrument companies to gain a significant foothold in import guitar sales in the United States and Europe, as ...

Tube Screamer, others

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stiletto Formal, The American post-hardcore musical groups Musical groups from Phoenix, Arizona 2004 establishments in Arizona 2009 disestablishments in Arizona Musical groups established in 2004 Musical groups disestablished in 2009 Rock music groups from Arizona