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 FRANZ FERDINAND Rating (Out of 10): 9 Jacqueline/Tell Her Tonight/Take Me Out/The Dark Of The Matinee/Auf Achse/Cheating On You/This Fire/Darts Of Pleasure/Michael/Come On Home/40FT Franz Ferdinand are the media's little darlings at the minute. Every year a band emerges to be embraced by all and sundry and proclaimed to be the next big thing. This year that accolade goes to Franz Ferdinand. The NME loves them, Radio One loves them, Morrissey loves them; it's hard to imagine anyone not loving them. This sort of media attention ususally makes me very sceptical, and it wasn't until hearing 'Matinee' on the radio that I realized that Franz Ferdinand were a very specuial band indeed. There's something very original about them, something that little bit different to everything else that's going on in the music industry at the minute. They manage to come across as romantic and sophisticated while still managing to be cool! The music press have labelled them the British Stokes, and they've also been compared to The White Stripes, but to me these comparrissons make no sense at all. There's something very British about their style that makes comparrissons to Amneican bands redundant. For me, they are more like a cross between The Divine Comedy and The Smiths, with a little bit of Sparks thrown in for good measure. Franz Ferdinand's self-titled debut album is definitely one of the best albums released so far this year (it would have been THE best if a certain ex-Smith's front man hadn't released an album this week!). The songs are mainly guitar-led rock songs, but with a very sophisticated and romantic edge to them. Franz Ferdinand are a band that hail back to a different era. There's something very 1950's about the way they look and sound, yet they still manage to appeal to a comtemporary audience. The main thing that gives Franz Ferndinand a edge of differnce is the lead singer's voice. It is smooth and suave, like a cross between Neil Hannon and Frank Sinatra! It's a voice that wouldn't sound out of place singing easy listening classics, but when when it's applied to this brand of fresh, young rock music it sounds absolutely incredible. Tracks such as 'Matinee', 'Take Me Out' and 'Tell Her Tonight' are all incredibly infectious, inbeat songs, the kind you just can't get out of your head. And this is balanced out with a few softer moments such as 'Come On Home' and 'Auf Achse'. When someone releases a debut album as good as this it's difficult to see what's going to happen next for them. Is it possible for Franz Ferdinand to get any better? We can but hope! Send A Comment BACK TO INDEX BACK TO MUSIC REVIEWS INDEX |