Recently it seems like every magazine I pick up has something positive to say about Franz Ferdinand; Franz Ferdinand this, Franz Ferdinand that. It's always Franz, Franz, Franz! Yet there are still people who ask, "Who is Franz Ferdinand?" That?s a completely reasonable question, because not everyone reads music magazines. Archduke Francis Ferdinand?s assassination was one of many causes of World War I, but this is Franz Ferdinand the band. A band that has insanely catchy songs, and all I could tell my friend was, "They?re just some band with sexy accents."
So really, who is Franz Ferdinand? Franz Ferdinand is four Scottish guys who write about love, girls, and sometimes guys along really snazzy tunes. They are in the same vein as The Strokes, The Rapture, Hot Hot Heat, and Interpol, while drawing influences from their predecessors the Talking Heads, Joy Division, and the Smiths. There a lot of dark undertones and a sense of urgency as a result of their choice of keys.
Musicians that approach their instruments as if their part was important instead of simply an accompaniment of the vocalist achieve more interesting and intricate songs. The instruments tone their parts down a little during Kapranos?s singing, but once the vocals drop out, the instruments take over the "vocal" duties successfully; there are no moments of inadequacy. Kapranos said in an interview in Filter magazine that they play singular notes instead of chords whenever they can, because "it?s more pure and powerful, when you reject the excess." Maybe that?s their secret weapon of writing infectious songs.
"Jacqueline" starts off with Alex Kapranos?s singing over the soft strumming of a guitar. Then the bass comes in and quells the gentle guitar, as it enters into a super-charged number about how "it?s better on holiday/that?s why we only work when we need the money." Someone told me that the intro to "Tell Her Tonight" sounds like "Funky Town," and I laughed. Now, however, I recognize that they do have some disco beats and groovy bass lines that would create that suspicion. I was highly addicted to "Take Me Out" the first time I had heard it; I tapped the beat with my pencil, hummed the song, and sang the lyrics to myself.
The varying intensities, lyrics, and Kapranos?s smooth vocals in "Darts of Pleasure" and "Michael" create such sensuality that the songs border being erotic. The lyrical focus is taken out in parts of songs, where words are repeated and sometimes the subjects of the songs are ambiguous, but "Come on Home" reveals clear emotional lyrics like "I find I like a life this lonely/it rips and pierces me in places I can?t see/I love the rip of nerves the rip that wakes me." Although there are some "la la la?s" to fill some space in "40 Ft" there is still vivid imagery that heightens the lyrical content. Although both songs have lyrical content, it does not make the instrumentation suffer at all.
The album was gathering dust on my shelf, before I picked it up to review. I appreciate the album more than I did when I first bought it, because I actually took the time to listen to the entire album without continually pressing repeat on "Take Me Out."
