Franz Ferdinand review

When the world first heard of Franz Ferdinand (the band, not the assassinated archduke), the world began to fall in love with the four immaculately-dressed boys from Glasgow.

And why not? At the time, they were an invigorating kick of fresh air in pop music. "Take Me Out," with its distinctive beat and arty video, was one of the best songs of 2004. They were something of a jolt when compared to the bands of their countrymen, Belle and Sebastian and Camera Obscura.

Their first album (self-titled) has since become a modern classic and maybe their definitive work to date. Maybe.

The year 2005 brought with it "You Could Have It So Much Better" which could have been, well, better. Franz Ferdinand played it too safe with that offering, although it did have a few exceptional songs ("Walk Away," "Outsiders," etc.) Songs like "Do You Want To," all strut and little substance, got old before they were optioned to use on hair commercials. Their reign as dance-rock champions? Possibly over, as similar bands appeared left and right to challenge them.

Many fans criticized the album, complaining of its more outright "pop" sound that was too glossy to be real. It seems that Franz Ferdinand have decided to take their fans' advice to heart.

So, about four years later, here comes "Tonight," ready to go. The band is calling it their "night" album, which is evident from the dark-crime-scene-inspired cover.

And it feels appropriate. "Tonight" seems to follow the escapades of one memorable evening and the emotions that fluctuate throughout it.

"Ulysses," the first single, kicks things off. It marks the album's path into an universe of debauchery and excess. The literary references are vague, but they work, following in the key with somehow keeping things arched between the highbrow and the lowbrow.

The next song, "Turn It On," wastes no time in getting started and feels very much an '80s throwback. After that, there's "No You Girls," one of the album's foremost highlights. This is the band of boys entering the scene of a nightclub, triggering on the reactions between the sexes.

"'Cause I never wonder how the girl feels!" Alex Kapranos, the swaggering lead singer, claims. They're not on the search for Miss Right, clearly. More like "Miss Right Now." The same goes for the girls referenced in the song. Give it another listen and you'll be hearing it in your head for the rest of the day. (Interesting fact: drummer Paul Thomson used a human skeleton for percussion on this song. I don't know that's relevant, but it's interesting).

"Send Him Away" follows in this vein, with lines like "no, I don't care his breath is in your hair." Though not much of an outstanding track, it still works, even as decent filler.

A big complaint of the album, of course, is that there's not much differentiation from track to track. Some of the songs simply come off as variations of each other.

But: it's Franz Ferdinand. They, to a degree, will always sounds like Franz Ferdinand, even if they were playing gothic polka rockabilly and singing in Icelandic.

The band acknowledges this slight fault readily. Take that and the more experimental fare "Tonight" has to offer ("Lucid Dreams") and the songs that don't much stick out to the listener ("Dream Again," "Live Alone," "Twilight Omens"), and those are the lone pitfalls. Strip away that and you have one of the first solid albums of 2009. Franz Ferdinand are at their best when their trusted formula and intensify it.

"What She Came For," a sexual predator of a song, is probably one of the best in Franz Ferdinand's catalog, not just the album. It takes the sound that they seemed to have almost perfected and raises it to another level.

Just over three minutes into the song, it disappears into a bevy of guitar riffs and comes right back around.

"Can't Stop Feeling" is hypnotic and lingering. It's a drink getting to your head. "Katherine Kiss Me" is how the "night" comes to its end. It's soft, quiet, acoustic-driven. It calls to mind "Eleanor" from "YCHISMB." It's a moment of introspection on the album; it's subdued. It borrows the lyrics from "No You Girls" but adds rue to it.

"Yes I love you, I mean, I need to love," Kapranos confesses. It's easy to imagine: the sun rising, him lighting a cigarette and with a stomach that's half full of regret and half full of satisfaction.

The night's come to an end, but it's not a night to forget. And with that, Franz Ferdinand is back.

FEBRUARY 16, 2009

back in the day I was so proud of this. but I look back and am not so fond of the album.