Vocalist Nate Ruess and multi-instrumentalist Sam Means were gearing up for their big comeback as the band The Format in January. But just as their new album was being released, Alex Pretti was killed on the streets of Minneapolis. Like many artists and musicians around the country and the world, Means and Ruess were shaken by what they were seeing on the news — and they wanted to use their creative powers to act. 

The band directed proceeds from its new single “The Bar is Set So Low,” an emotionally stirring and extremely catchy political anthem, to three Minnesota nonprofits: Women’s Foundation of Minnesota’s Immigrant Rapid Response Fund, Immigrant Defense Network and the Advocates for Immigrant Rights, plus Latino Memphis. They also sell a long-sleeved T-shirt, with sales going to support the same nonprofits. 

This weekend, the band plays a free afternoon show at First Avenue as part of its Saturdays in the Park series, featuring an acoustic set and tabling by local nonprofits. 

Friends since childhood, Ruess and Means took divergent paths after The Format’s 2008 breakup, with Ruess going on to form the band fun. and penning the Grammy-winning smash “We Are Young.” The duo had planned a reunion tour in 2020 that was derailed by COVID-19. They were finally ready to tour their new album at the beginning of this year, when the events in Minnesota inspired them to use their music to help causes. 

Related: ‘Streets of Minneapolis’: 32 protest songs inspired by the Twin Cities’ ICE resistance

Here’s an interview with Ruess and Means about the song, their Saturdays in the Park series, their love of Rage Against the Machine and what makes a killer ballad. 

Sheila Regan: How did you guys decide to do a free Saturdays in the Park concert series, and what is it all about? 

Nate Ruess: I guess we were a little just shocked by everything that was happening. Alex Pretti had been murdered, and those horrible things happened in Minnesota and probably continue to happen in Minnesota. 

I think I was listening to a bunch of Rage Against the Machine, and we were talking about how the lyrics from 25 years ago could still be completely applied today with no difference whatsoever, and how can we be more directly involved, and how can people become more directly involved? We were moved by how many people showed up on the streets. Sorry, it’s tough not to get choked up about it, but how many people showed up in Minnesota on the streets, and that was direct action, and that was organizing, and so we thought, OK, well, what can we do with what we have? 

We decided that we would play free shows in a park on Saturdays when we’re on tour. In between a set of songs, we’ll have different organizations come up and talk about how everybody can go and sign up for the people that are there.

Sam Means: We did a bunch of them on our spring tour when it started, and we just continue to do them. The Minneapolis show happens to not be in a park, but we’re still going to call it that.  

SR: How do you make it financially feasible for you?  

NR: Yeah, our travel is covered. We want to do everything kind of as DIY and as punk rock as possible. We’ll play B-sides. We’ll play stuff that maybe you’re not going to see at the concert. It’s a beautiful thing. Sam decided to bring a button maker that seems to be very popular.  

SM: It’s cool, too, because we went into it with very little plan. It was incredibly scrappy, and it was very overwhelming because people did show up and people did want to interact and do all these things, and it was the really cool thing to see just how people immediately sprung to action to help us. It’s gotten a little bit more streamlined, but it still has that sort of soapbox vibe to it. 

SR: How has Rage Against the Machine influenced you?

NR: I think they’ve helped shape who I am, morally speaking. We’re by no means an overtly political band, but we have something to give. It’s been so incredible to see people sign up for organizations, and find things they can become directly involved with.

SR: What went into writing “The Bar is Set So Low?” 

NR: I had written the lyrics in 2024, just thinking about how awful we treat our immigrants in this country, illegal and otherwise. And so that was what this song was about. The bar is set so low, I’m caught under it.  

On the day of Alex Pretti’s murder, we were doing a release show in our hometown of Phoenix. It was supposed to be this celebratory moment, and it was just like, did you see what just happened? 

That was not a song that was on the album. And it was like, I can’t go up on stage unless we sing this. I’m no longer interested in celebrating. And so we closed the set off with that song, and it just felt like we needed to just release this song for free, and so we went and re-recorded it, and a few weeks later, released it on Bandcamp. 

Related: Profiles in Courage: 23 more protest songs inspired by the Twin Cities ICE resistance

SR: What makes a catchy ballad?

NR: A chorus, just repeating a chorus over and over again. I’ve had a lot of success writing catchy ballads. You just got to make the chorus really big and kind of like ramp it up. And then, Sam, do you know Eric Carmen from the Raspberries? 

SM: Yeah … 

NR: He had this great song in the ’80s, “Lose Control.”

SM: How’s it go?

NR: “When I look in your eyes, I go crazy.” 

SM: Oh yeah! 

NR: Fucking unbelievable song! I was just reminded of it the other day, and I was like, now that is how you write a fucking ballad. So you study Eric Carmen. 

The Format’s Minneapolis Saturday in the Park show takes place at 2 p.m. on Sept. 19 (free). More information here. They also play ticketed shows at the same venue on Sept. 18 and 19 ($52). More information here. 

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