By Angus White
The 00s gave us some of the greatest bands in indie/rock history, most of them are still together now and are keeping us on our toes as we wait impatiently for new material. There’s nothing better than when a classic from your childhood comes on. It takes you back to the good old days. If you have somehow missed these bands, well now is your moment, get listening.
This week we turn to Scottish rock band, Franz Ferdinand, which has gained the reputation of being the most popular post-punk revival bands. The band formed back in 2002, after being in many previous bands before forming Franz Ferdinand. Well, there is good news. This band are still alive and well, unlike the previous two projects.
Franz Ferdinand are composed of Alex Kapranos (vocals/guitar), Bob Hardy (bass), Paul Thomson (drums), Dino Bardot (guitar) and Julian Corrie (guitar/synths). Last year it was announced that Nick McCarthy had taken a break to focus on family matters and other projects. The band have so far produced four albums and have created a new project within Franz Ferdinand called FFS, they merged with American rock band Sparks in 2015 had released their debut album under the new super group in June 2015.
The Scottish outfit signed to Domino Records and released their debut EP, Darts of Pleasure in late 2003. The band won their first critical award through the NME Awards. In January 2004, the band moved across to Switzerland to record their debut album. The eponymous debut album was a success in the UK, peaking at #3 in the UK album charts. This wasn’t the story across the Pond. The album only scraped into the bottom of the Billboard 200 but later on the same year after numerous tours and indulgence of MTV meant it climbed to #32 in the US Billboard 200. The album also went on to win the Mercury Album Award, was named NME’s album of the year. Take Me Out became an instant hit and has remained a classic ever since.
2005 saw the band take to the studio to record their sophomore album, You Could Have It So Much Better which was released on October 3 2005. The band has tried to broaden their musical range. Hardy said: “There’s more to life than disco-beat guitar music”.
Despite most debut albums being a bands best work, this follow-up was said to be on par or even better than their debut. The album did better in the charts than the first round, entering the UK charts at #1 and US charts at #8. Not only was the album as a whole a success but various singles were critically acclaimed, including Do You Want To, which peaked at #4 in UK charts, winning two BRITs (Best British Group and Rock Act) and Q named it Single of 2005.
The next album was Tonight: Franz Ferdinand, which has been described by Kapranos as “More assured and friendlier for the dance floor” compared to their second album which was “like a teenager having sex”. This album again showed a different side of Franz Ferdinand, staying true to their rock roots but has more of a subtle dance groove. Again proved to be a success, entering the UK charts at #2 and US at #9. 2009 was not only the year of their third album but became the year Franz Ferdinand smashed the festival scene worldwide; playing as a main act at Glastonbury, Coachella, Radio One’s Big Weekend and also played as Green Day’s main support from 8th to 26th August. 2010, the band announced they had started working on the next album.
By 2012, new songs added to their set and 2013, their next album was officially announced, titled Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action and was predicted to be the soundtrack to the summer of 2013. Their collaboration with Sparks, saw the supergroup FFS form. The self-titled album was toured across Europe and was released in October 2015.
The band lost McCarthy in 2016 but they have stressed it is possible for his return at a later date. The Scottish rockers voiced their grievances with the candidacy of Donald Trump through their single, Demagogue. At the beginning of 2017, a new line up was announced with Bardot and Corrie joining to make the group a five piece for the first time.
As for now, the group are headlining Truck festival and Kendal Calling, as well as the rumours of a the next studio album in the works.
