Very few bands enjoy the luxury of success from first international single – so much success, in fact, that they would find that first single, the still stellar “Take Me Out”, hit the top of the charts and even the number one spot on the Hottest 100. Some 6 years and 3 albums later, Franz Ferdinand have returned to our shores, playing a string of sideshows alongside their Future Music Festival appearances.
While it’s fair to say that the Glasgow band didn’t quite live up to public expectation on the latest LP, Tonight: Franz Ferdinand, such a fact does little to reflect their live show – bigger, better and more polished than ever. And a pretty damn fun experience to boot.
But first up were local heroes Philadelphia Grand Jury, who now claim in their pre-recorded banter that that are actually from the city that is their namesake. This confused a lot of people around me (cue: “Really?”), but kept no one from enjoying their invigorating set. “I’m Going to Kill You” was a hit with fans and those unfamiliar with the Sydney three-piece alike. Meanwhile, the set ended with one of the best trifectas you’ll see in live music today: “Going to the Casino (Tomorrow Night)”, “I Don’t Want to Party (Party)” and the soon-to-be-a-classic “The Good News”. Regardless of one’s taste, there is no denying the pure palatable and infectious nature of the band. Time and time again they prove that they’re only getting better with each and every live performance.
Brisbane’s Yves Klein Blue continued the entertaining lead up to the main attraction, performing a set which focused on last year’s acclaimed Ragged & Ecstatic LP, and included a stellar cover of Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side”. Lead singer Michael Tomlinson and his group of misfits dominated the circus tent’s stage, proving once again that they’ve got what it takes to follow up their LP with a continuing success story – both on record and live on stage. I for one, can’t wait to see what the band pops out next – but for the moment I’m still relishing the goodness that makes up Ragged & Ecstatic.
Finally, after a long 40-minute wait, the success story that is Glasgow’s
Franz Ferdinand
waltzed onto the stage to the loud cheer of the adoring local punters. They immediately launched into a string of crowd pleasing numbers, a trend which they continued throughout the 90-minute set. “Dark of the Matinee” opened up proceedings, with a Franz Ferdinand banner draped behind. This was promptly removed, and replaced with a video screen, which lit “No You Girls” up as the exhilarating second song. Surprisingly, “Do You Want To” was brought out third, and “Take Me Out” showed up early too, half way through the main set.
The remainder of the set floated between all 3 LPs, with much focus, surprisingly (and thankfully) on their debut selftitled LP. “Van Tango”, a B-Side off of “Darts of Pleasure”, was a surprise inclusion, “for the hardcore” in the crowd, as lead singer Alex Kapranos kindly put it.
They went on to prove why they remain a force to be reckoned with, especially in the live setting – “Turn It On” featured some tambourine and maracas excellence; main set closer, “Outsiders”, ended with all four members beating the living daylights out of a group of drums – leaving the crowd with their hearts racing and their hands clapping for more.
The encore ended up being even more epic than the main set, with Alex coming on solo for “Jacqueline”, a track which wasn’t on the original setlist, but rather a crowd request. A cover of “All My Friends” by LCD Soundsystem was thrown into the mix – “This Fire” took the reigns as the hottest track of the set (no pun intended… okay, maybe a little bit) – and the set was closed by “Lucid Dreams” of their latest LP “Tonight: Franz Ferdinand”.
The track, along with the other songs played off the LP, translated beautifully well in the live setting, and they ended the show with a jam to be reckoned with. With heaps of keyboards and plenty of killer guitar riffs, eventually the stage was left with only the drummer to finish things off. In the process, they proved just why the Future organisers had chosen them for their 2010 tour: they can pull off the dance riffs as good as anyone, and better than most.
While Franz remain a band to run off the fumes of initial success, they continue to prove they are worthy of our attention. Their live show is one of the best I’ve seen in some time, and if the jam is anything to go by, they’ll absolutely kill it when they hit the Future Music Festival stage this weekend.
Full Setlist:
Dark of the Matinee
No You Girls
Do You Want To
Van Tango
What She Came For
Michael
Can’t Stop Feeling
Take Me Out
Ulysees
The Fallen
Turn It On
40 ft
Outsiders
Encore:
Jacqueline
Walk Away
All My Friends (LCD Soundsystem Cover)
This Fire
Lucid Dreams
