Search - Franz Ferdinand :: Franz Ferdinand (Bonus CD) (Spec) (Dig)

Take them out

E. A Solinas | MD USA | 12/14/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"No, this Franz Ferdinand is not a person. Rather, it is a Scottish quartet who produced some of the most entertaining rock-y pop of the past year in their self-titled debut, shifting from U.K. stardom to the U.S. charts as well. It's undeniably a guilty pleasure, but it's also fun, catchy and fairly original.



The self-titled album starts off on a strong note with the bass-heavy pop "Jacqueline," the kickoff to a slew of rock-tinged songs (the catchy, heavy "Take Me Out," the slithery "Darts of Pleasure"), vaguely arty pop (the addictive "The Dark of the Matinee"), before finishing off with the quirky percussion, riffs and "la la la"s of "40'."



There is also a bonus CD, which has a few songs tacked in from their "Darts of Pleasure" EP. Among the stuff on this bonus disc is a low-key remix of "This Fire," the overwrought "Shopping For Blood," and the geekily gleeful glam of "Van Tango." The demos aren't nearly as enjoyable -- they're rough, which is to be expected, but they are also slurred and not catchy.



One of the most pleasant things about "Franz Ferdinand" is the sense of fun that permeates the music. It sounds like a bunch of lads having a great time as they make some very danceable music. There are some dud melodies ("Tell Her Tonight") after their strong opener, but it's all fairly entertaining.



However, Franz Ferdinand needs to work on their melodies -- they're pretty entertaining, but somewhat repetitive, like the rising and falling riff in "Michael." The riff's good, but it fails to go anywhere. More solid are the bass lines and the thrashier guitar work, backed up some equally solid percussion. And they have a great sense of what makes a good pop-rock tune, able to be catchy without being flimsy.



Singer/lead vocalist Alex Kapranos is a good flexible vocalist; he can swoon and shout, and keeps his vocals from sinking into the mire of thrashing guitars. He also has the admirable talent of being able to shift his voice to make it softer or harder, depending on the song. Franz Ferdinand needs to do something about the terrible high-pitched backing in "Tell Her Tonight," though.



It's not a classic by any stretch, but the rock-tinged pop of "Franz Ferdinand" is an entertaining diversion in the pop-rock world. And the bonus CD is just icing on the cake."

Good Stuff

dorianh49 | Murrieta, CA USA | 03/19/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm not a music expert by any means, but Franz Ferdinand strike me as a cross between The Clash and The Cure, with more modern Interpol-esque elements thrown in. What results is a highly (re)listenable, original, catchy sound that'll satisfy that need to listen to some "Good Stuff".



A friend of mine suggested I listen to Interpol, so I ordered a couple of their albums off of Amazon and thought they were decent, although it seemed something was missing. Amazon always lists similar artists underneath any given CD, and I saw that Franz Ferdinand was listing. Having never heard of them, I offhandedly read a couple reviews and promptly forgot about them... until a few months later when I saw their CD combined with a bonus CD at a local "City" of the "Circuit" variety during their bi-annual $9.99 CD sale. I picked it up not expecting anything, but I gotta tell you -- I love it!



The bonus CD is really the deal-maker, with a faster-tempo'd rerecording of This Fire (it's entitled This Fffire on the bonus CD) that's much catchier than the great, original version (it makes me think of "That Thing You Do", which started out as a slow song until Guy sped it up; some songs were born to be fast... "That Thing You Do" and "This Fire" are two of them). "Van Tango" is fun and one of the better songs on the two-CD album, along with "All For You, Sophia", which is currently my favorite Franz Ferdinand Song. "Words So Leisured", while not their best work, is interesting as sort of a "respin" of "Darts of Pleasure", track number 8 on the main CD.



The main album, also, isn't lacking great songs. I've greatly enjoyed "Take Me Out", an instanly recognizable song (after the 45-second introduction), even if you've never heard it before. "This Fire", of course, is excellent, and "Auf Achse" will have you pressing the repeat button a few times.



The rest of the songs are all good; some may like the others even more than the ones I've suggested, proving that there's something good for everyone here."

AMAZING album

mjr | nyc | 11/16/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Without a doubt, this is the single best album of 2004. And NOT because of their 2 hits- "Take Me Out" and "This Fire."



The album is great because it's almost a re-invention of indie rock. Franz has such a unique indie sound that one can't help but be drawn in. After "Take Me Out" hit such high heights, I decided to check the album out... and to my initial surprise, I was absolutely blown away. I dare a true rock fan to listen to the album and find even ONE bad song.



Franz is also an interesting band because of their lyrics- one song can have entirely one dimensional (and rather repetitive) lyrics, while the next song will have true meaning. If you want songs with great lyrics definitely check out "The Dark of the Matinee" (my personal favorite song on the album) and "Come On Home." Those songs have some true feeling.



The rhythms of EVERY song are just great. They really make you want to move and (for me) they just make you so happy. It really is a cheer-you-up kind of album.



While I am certainly not trying to present Franz as some kind of earth-shattering new sound/band/movement- I AM saying this is just a great listen. Their unique sound has given me new hope in indie rock (along with a great band named Kasabian- check them out, too) and I can tell they have some staying power (check out Franz's new album- You Could Have It So Much Better- it's also great, even though it sounds similar to this one).

So, if you've only heard their singles and hits, check out the whole album- it'll be a pleasant surprise. I know it was for me."