Franz Ferdinand is a rock band that formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 2002. Named after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, the band comprises Alex Kapranos (lead vocals and guitar), Bob Hardy (bass guitar), Nick McCarthy (rhythm guitar, keyboards and backing vocals), and Paul Thomson (drums, percussion and backing vocals)...

Franz Ferdinand first experienced chart success with their second single 'Take Me Out' reaching number 3 in the UK charts. This was followed by their debut album Franz Ferdinand where it climbed to number 3 in the UK album charts. The band have won various awards including the 2004 Mercury Music Prize, two Brit Awards in 2005 and NME named them as their album of the year.

Some four years on from the last album, You Could Have it so Much Better, fans will be pleased to hear that their third album Tonight: Franz Ferdinand is to be released a week after their new single ‘Ulysses’.

Following on from the brand new single, this album does not disappoint. It opens with
‘Ulysses’ which was a little worrying as I thought we had heard the best of this album already. It’s a great opening track, with heavy bass, scratchy guitar riffs and great synth. sounds.

Fortunately, the tracks just keep getting better and better. This album has the heavy sound of punk rock that Franz Ferdinand are famous for but we also hear some very different sounds too.

Track 4, ‘Send Him Away’, has an upbeat pop sound and I love the ending where at 2:20 into the song the pace becomes faster and there is a distinct Latin sound that shakes the track to life.

Track 9, ‘Can’t Stop the Feeling’, opens with a fantastic heavy bass that is used for the chorus. It is just long enough to leave you wanting more and when put together with the scratchy tones of Kapranos’s vocals this makes for a great track.

My favourite track on this album would have to be track 10, ‘Lucid Dreams’. It opens just like any other Franz Ferdinand tune but as we hit 4:42 the music fades out and in comes some serious heavy synthesised bass, with drums kicking in after 30 seconds and percussion lightly added in the background. This track goes on for just under 8 minutes; it’s like two songs in one as the beginning is so different to the end. It feels like the tune has a mind of its own which is quite apt as it ends with the light sound of the pulsing bass, which reminds me of the sound of a heartbeat.

The final two tracks on this album, ‘Dream Again’ and 'Katherine Kiss Me’, are slow paced, soft and gentle. These tunes feel like they have been stripped of all the heavy synth sounds and bass, which leave us with the raw sounding Franz Ferdinand.

Truly Superb!

9

Helena Rea