BY JESSE SCOTT

FOR THE FREE LANCE-STAR

There are very few bands that embody their name so perfectly.

Fun. (with a period) is one of those bands.

The New York-based indie rock trio is enjoying the type of blissful ride that most bands can only dream of. Its smash, piano-infused anthem, "We Are Young," held No. 1 on the Billboard charts for six straight weeks, was featured on "Glee" and recently reached its three-millionth digital download.

Fun. will play two sold-out shows at the 9:30 Club in Washington tonight and tomorrow with the Miniature Tigers.

"I really don't know what to make out of all of the things that have happened lately," pianist and guitarist Andrew Dost said in a phone interview from Albany, N.Y. "It's all been really strange and nothing we really expected. After so many years together, we certainly didn't mind it. We didn't think it was really possible and it wasn't even on our radar."

Fun. has been around since 2008. The band is made up of two former members of The Format--Dost and lead singer Nate Ruess. Jack Antonoff, a former vocalist for Steel Train, rounds out the trio. Fun. released its first album, "Aim and Ignite," to critical acclaim in 2009.

But nothing has earned the band more attention than its current single. "We Are Young" is simply everywhere--in malls, on commercials and floating along countless, invisible radio waves as you read this.

The song is a poppy and peppy sign of the times and only a mere glimpse into the pure joy that is Fun. It was only a matter of time until the rest of America caught on to what so many Fun. fans have known for years.

"It's exciting to have depth to our cataloge," said Dost. "A lot of these shows on our current tour were pretty much sold-out before 'We Are Young.' A lot of the people who had tickets had been our fans for a long time. To know these songs carry such meaning to them makes us feel very comfortable."

Fun.'s latest album, "Some Nights," is highly infectious. From harmony to heartache, the band finds the catchiest way to evoke the most genuine feelings. The band considers the album its strongest to date, amid a string of other successes both here and abroad.

"We were up in Canada a couple of days ago and our label's Canadian staff presented us with a double platinum award," said Dost. "A gold or platinum record is something that every kid with a guitar dreams of. It was a very special moment."

There are likely many more accolades in store for Fun. For a band that momentarily considered "Ice Cream" as a name, things really couldn't be sweeter.

"We went through thousands of names that were all pretty bad," laughed Dost. "And Fun. wasn't even on that list. Someone said 'ice cream' and we didn't really like ice cream as a band name, but we liked the feel of it. Fun. ultimately came out of it and we're glad we stuck with it."

Jesse Scott is a freelance writer from Fredericksburg.