Franz Ferdinand

I love that this band doesn't sound the same in every song.....but they always sound like themselves.

In 2004 when they released this no one else was doing this sort of crisp sharp art rock. So unlike a lot of the Indie landfill released around the time this record still feels like a breath of Fresh air. "Take me out" thrills whilst "Michael" makes you smile, and throughout its impossible not to move your feet. 4/5

didn't give a shit about FF then, don't give a shit now. This is what gave our era of music a bad name "landfill indy"

An album that delivered one of the biggest hit singles of the 2000s (the me out) and still managed to live up to expectations. Michael and The Dark of the Matinee were also big singles and great tracks but I had forgotten the strength in depth of the whole album. The brilliant opener Jacqueline, Auf Achse, This fire and the final track 40’ the album rarely misses a beat from start to finish. A great pop rock album that still sounds great today.

A fizzing firework that has been let off in the face of a child, scarring them for life. They now live a sheltered, quiet life, afraid of making new friends. They will never find love.

A near-perfect compendium of carefully crafted punchy post-punk tunes, bristling with brio and bravado. There's not a second wasted in the listening experience for this album - every single track chugs its way into your mind and stays there for good. And you knew that they'd be just as good at a gig as they sounded here. An outstanding album, and one for the ages.

It is a refreshing album. Good to listen to after something more experimental or hard to understand. In short, it is a simple album, but here, simplicity it's a good thing.

Look, Take Me Out was an all time indie disco classic, and there's some other good stuff in there. The art school thing meant that their videos were quite interesting too. But Alex Kapranos was rude about my boys The Chisel for no good reason, so in the bin with Razorlight they must go. Objectively, the only difference between Franz Ferdinand and noughties blowhards The Libertines is that FF rip off the same bands while affecting ironic detachment. Either way, it's a band that think they're dead clever for shoplifting from Wire, Gang Of Four and Magazine, forgetting that a photocopy of a photocopy of a photocopy eventually ends up a pale reflection of the original beautiful picture. There's some fun manifestoey ideas behind their style and look, and as I said, Take Me Out is great, Dark of the Matinee is fine enough and mentions Terry Wogan

I hadn’t listened to this album in 17 years. Made me kinda miss when bands like this were popular.

2/9/2022 Today's Album: "Franz Ferdinand" by Franz Ferdinand - I reviewed this album right after the last on the flight home from Colorado and went song by song, but the text didn't save so I'll give a shorter and more concise review Edit: This did not end up being concise. This album is fantastic. Going into it, I had heard the title track, Take Me Out, which is a clear shining moment on this album with one of the best executed beat switch ups and lush background instrumentation and dueling guitars. However, that isn't to say there aren't other highlights on this LP. The opener, Jacqueline begins with a softly spoken vocal before the bassline welcomes in the drums and lead guitar. Like a lot of songs on this record, it is an incredibly danceable track with a great chorus that has a critical message of the daily grind of capitalism. The track The Dark of The Matinée is a mixture of 2000s alt rock and 50s show tune melodies, thus the name of the track. The chorus absolutely slaps and the track in general just keeps a really fun and danceable energy throughout. The slowed refrain that speeds back up into the chorus is incredibly well executed and every instrument is able to shine through the mix. The track This Fire is a fairly popular track that has strange vocal harmonies similar to Talking Heads but the quick and precise drum beat and staccato guitar strumming keeps it very energetic and the finish is very noisy and climactic. The track Come On Home is a fantastic track that might have become my favorite of the record. The subtle, yet dramatic chorus and incredible guitar and synth work gives this song an amazing energy. I should mention that this album has a very uniform sound and despite for the most part being quite innovative with it, the track Cheating On You just didn't do many exciting things with the style. However there are plenty of moments where there is tons of innovation. The track Auf Achse has these ringing synths to back the usual quick drum beat, guitar and bass and it works very well. I also like the bit of German at the end of it to give the title some context and I imagine have a potent message if I went looking for it. The album closes off well with the track 40', which just cements the entire vibe of the track into one song, with it feeling like a culmination of what came before it. It's a much more subtle and chilled out track and it gives it a somber finale feeling. The guitar riff that comes in around 2 minutes is great and the drums/cymbals are getting the absolute shit beat out of them. There's also a really cool synth line that comes in before it cuts back down to the more somber vibe. It leaves off the album in a fantastic way and I just cannot emphasize that enough. This album blew me away with it's creativity, yet consistency. Each Instrument always comes through the mix well and the entire album has themes of break up, anger towards exes (or the other gender in general), and positivity towards being single after a shitty relationship. I love this album and although some songs lack in innovation, it's really hard to complain when the album flows so excellently and keeps my interest so well throughout. If you like alt rock or rock in general, this is an essential listen. Score: 9.5 Phenomenal Highlights: Jacqueline, Tell Her Tonight, Take Me Out, The Dark of The Matinée, Auf Achse, This Fire, Darts of Pleasure, Michael, Come on Home, 40'

Great sound, though everything sounds a bit too similar. Not my favorite, but I could listen to this all day.

It's OK. *Pushes glasses up nose* A bit too derivative of Television in places.

So, what, did a couple crates of original, sealed copies of Gang of Four’s “Entertainment!” turn up in a warehouse in England in like 2001 or 2002 and the government, unsure of what to do with them, decided to disperse them through random cities and hand them out to the disaffected youth on the dole? It’s one of few plausible explanations for why there are so many bands on this list that have such a clear debt to Gang of Four and sound almost exactly like each other. I get that this was the shit when you were a kid or in college, but really, truly, it’s nothing special. Franz Ferdinand are just one band in a long list of British bands from the aughts chasing the same sound. The authors of this list seem to feel similarly: this record (along with several others of the same ilk) has been removed from subsequent versions of the book. Its rating here, well above legitimately influential and classic records like Sonic Youth’s “Daydream Nation” or Television’s “Marquee Moon” or the aforementioned “Entertainment!” by Gang Of Four, is puzzling and probably indicative of pretty strong nostalgia bias on this site. …Sorry for the rant, these early 2000’s British indie selections seem to bring out the worst in me.

Take me out!

Solid Album.

Nasty ass album

Franz Ferdinand eschewed the traditional formula and released their greatest hits album as their first record. Instant classic. Every one of these could have been a single.

already know this is one of my favorite albums. didn't need to listen cause it's top on my itunes, but i listened anyways

Great album with enjoyable hooks and gritty guitar work. Several fantastic songs with Take me out being a stand out along with 40' and in the matinee

This is an exuberant record where most instruments swing, and some song stories are vivid, moving at a clip, little time to be bored. I shunned this when it came out due to my weird prejudices, but think this is fine. This is a light, cake. <looks at my comrade’s review…> …or maybe, I was right all along?!

really solid indie rock that I never thought to listen to before outside take me out

Punchy, funky dance-punk with a hedonist heart. Infectious, punctual hooks and well-crafted lyrics. Standout Tracks - Jacqueline, Take Me Out, This Fire, Darts of Pleasure, Michael

If I transport myself back to 2004, then it's probably edging a 4, but probably more a 3 now. I'll be kind to it for the memories.

It’s fine? That’s about as polite as I can be for this overall bland forgettable record. There aren’t enough peaks to outshine the boredom. It’s definitely produced well, tight, polished but that just spotlights the lack of rawness/depth/feeling. It’s noisy - and not in a way that’s feels authentic.

Does anyone know anyone whose favourite band is Franz Ferdinand? Quirky awkward pop, made by quirky awkward men, with quirky awkward lyrics about quirky awkward subjects. Yes, we get it; you’re really clever and rate the Berlin trilogy above Ziggy Stardust. Go you… 2/5

Blazed a trail for landfill indie. Utterly forgettable except for "Take Me Out", which wasn't actually good.

This was quite a rough listening to I forgot how much the bands in the early 2000s all sound the same

A big nostalgia hit as this album was part of the soundtrack of my twenties. A lot of that music I don't really listen to any more (The Rakes anybody?) but there's still a lot of good stuff on here, Michael, The Matinee, This Fire, Take Me Out, Jaqueline and Darts of Pleasure are all a cut above the usual landfill indie of the time.

What the hell? Why can't all the albums here be this good? They have a way with visualization. I love their line, "flick your cigarette and kiss me" from another album, but this one isn't short on the imagery either. You take your white finger Slide the nail under the top and bottom buttons of my blazer Relax the fraying wool, slacken ties And I'm not to look at you in the shoe, but the eyes, find the eyes

Noire cigarrette vibes. So gud

I was originally going to put 4 stars, but realised I'd heard it a few too many times.

amazing. great throwback. i love these guys

Muy bueno

LINDO MARAVILHOSO NEM PRECISAVA OUVIR DE NOVO

Really liked this album

Great album start to finish. Early 2000s pop-rock with a hint of garage. Fun

Every song on it rulz

Great album, takes me back to my teen years

Would play this on repeat on first ever iPod on car journeys. What great memories

Always love a good Franz Ferdinand album. I also got to find some new gems in the album along with the usual tunes I love listening to!

Of course I love you.

Actual party rock! Good songs, well played, excellent 2000’s vibes

On the poppier side of the art rock movement of the time, but it's a good album from start to finish. I'd semi ignored them at the time, but it's good stuff.

Good memories, plenty of bangers, amazing how many lyrics I remember. Particularly loved ‘Michael’.

I liked this: fun sound, peppy guitar. I wonder if they’re any good live.

Catchier than a dinner fad, but not quite big enough to start a war. Really enjoy Dance of the matinee and This fire

Bah, this is an ex-1001 album. See http://1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie.wikidot.com/album-artists-a-z-ex What ever happened to Franz Ferdinand? I used to listen to this album when it came out, then forgot about it. Still has some great punchy pop tunes.

Remember 2004, when everyone sounded just a little bit like The Killers, but not quite as good? Ah, good times!

This is a FIFA menu distilled and flattened into an album. A time capsule of indie Brit-pop sensibilities that seeped into every corner of British culture in the mid 2000s. This album is a flashbang for any millenial born in the 90s, you'll know over half of these songs from just how prevalent and unavoidable this was as a movement. Not my taste but I cannot deny the cultural relevance of Franz Ferdinand and their contemporaries.

Ok

Ok. Better than other indie rock outings, but not interesting. Take Me Out is the most enjoyable track.

Fun listen. Nothing new or innovative.

It was okay. Wouldn't relisten.

Something about this band that I just can't get into them. I really like a lot of adjacent bands like the Strokes, Interpol, etc, but can't come around on FF. Overall, album is pretty standard earl 00's alt music.

These guys had a couple big hits in the early 2000s. I liked those songs back then. Hearing the whole album now I was not all that impressed. Most of the songs are pretty mediocre, Take Me Out is still a solid jam.

Fitfully decent 00s dance punk with slight Art Deco Talking Heads and Bowie croony thing going on. Unlike the real Archiduke Franz Ferdinand I wasn’t really struck or blown away. In terms of best songs. I would take out Jacqueline (even though she’s seventeen), marry Take Me Out and push the rest off a cliff.

Better than average art-rock from the early 2000s. Heavily disco-influenced drumming makes this more dance-able than most. Arrangements are bit more inventive than most. Take Me Out is a particularly good example of this. The tempo shift reeks of the Beatles' habit of welding together fragments of half-written songs. And if the Beatles did it, then it must be a sign of song-writing genius! (Spoiler: it isn't.) In fairness, Franz Ferdinand carry it off smoothly, which most people can't manage. But I can't shrug off the nagging suspicion that a lot of the praise for this release was the result of the last of the huge major label promotion budgets. I just don't hear this band talked about much anymore. I hope the band members invested their money wisely and are comfortably resting on their laurels.

I feel this era of music is one of the weakest, and this album does nothing but back that up. Should be right in my wheelhouse yet I find it surprisingly lacking. 3/5

herky jerky, knowing, Art School pop

The top general review of this album is a 5 and it reads as follows… “I love that this band doesn't sound the same in every song”. Now either the reviewer is being super ironic, or is totally deaf. Because to me every single track sounded EXACTLY the same. I liked the first track. Hey it sounds quite like “Take Me Out” by… erm … Then the second one was… the same jangly guitar riffs. The same drum beat. Ok a slightly different melody and different words, but… And then the next one..oh that IS ‘Take Me Out’. And then the next one. Same tedious riff. Same beat. And the next. I was praying for it to end. And surprised when I looked at the track list that I only actually suffered for 40 minutes. Felt like over an hour. I’ll give it a 2 because I quite liked the first track. I just didn’t want to hear it 11 times!

of course i’ve heard and liked take me out prior to listening. wasn’t a big fan of this album. or even a medium sized fan. this album can go blow in the wind

No idea why this is on this list.

forgettable, nichtmal catchy; erscheint mir auch erstaunlich irrelevant für 1001 alben liste (2004!)

Nothing special.

Bland

How did this scrape in? Was it 1001?

Стихи - полный треш и трясогузка. Бессмысленное открывание рта под посредственную музыку.

Franz Ferdinand is a very interesting band to me. This was the defining band of the PS2 era for me specifically. I swear to God, these guys had a song in just about every video game I played around the year 2005. I’ve added probably 15 of their songs from multiple albums on my Spotify from them already. The song “40’” was in my Top 5 most played songs last year, and there’s always a random smattering of Franz Ferdinand songs that end up on my playlist somehow, one way or another. All that being said, obviously I’m a very big fan of this band. Nothing weird about that right?? Actually, for how much I adore this band, I don’t really know a single thing about them, and I’d never heard an album of theirs from front to back until now. Couldn’t tell you anything about them other than the fact that every single time I hear one of their songs, I end up listening to it for the next month because I enjoy it so much. I don’t know what it is about this band, they just sound so unique to me. They’re having a lot of fun on this first album, which not only clearly shows in the music itself, but enhances it and makes it sound amazing. To paraphrase what another reviewer said, all of these songs sound very different from each other, while at the same time sounding very much like a Franz Ferdinand song. It’s just one of those bands man. I don’t know how any of them do it, but it’s just one of those bands you hear for a millisecond, and if you’ve ever heard a song by them, you’re instantly like, “Wait, that’s Franz Ferdinand. I haven’t heard this one before, time to add it to my library and listen to it for the next entire month until I get it out of my head. Otherwise I’ll be singing it at work unconsciously.” This album is great. My favorites include “Jacqueline”, “Take Me Out”, “This Fire”, and “40’”. My favorite song in general is going to vary from day to day, but “Take Me Out” is just so iconic and nostalgic, it’s hard not to call it the best song on the album because of that. This is going to once again send me into a spiral where all I’m going to do when not working on this project is listening to all of the Franz Ferdinand albums on a loop for the next couple of months. It’s unexplainable just why this is one of my favorite bands. I hardly get it myself, I just think they sound really really good. Love the singer, love the funky chord progressions, love the variance of sounds, it’s just everything I’m looking for on an album. All killer, no filler. It’s my third 5 star album in a row. Keep it coming!!!!

A great album. Good memories of seeing them before it came out, one of the better post punk revival bands.

This album is like an old friend that you bump into and wonder why you don’t see more often.

ya era uno de mis favoritos 💕

going to their concert soon!!

One of the best 2000s indie rock albums. Pure energy from start to finish. Favorite tracks: Take Me Out, Auf Asche, This Fire, 40'

Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria was a man and so is every member of this band. 5/5

🥳

Je ne connaissais pas du tout, j'adore, un style qui peut se rapprocher d'Artic Monkeys !

Thêm một album rock, first impression khá tốt, nhạc dạo vào điềm tĩnh, nhẹ nhàng khúc sau rock it up =))) Lyrics chưa được ấn tượng, lặp khá nhiều, nhưng vẫn có những bài rất oke

Other than the big track everyone knows, this is a damn fine piece of 2000's rock. Solid 5 Stars.

I’m at a 10, with maybe just *one* little flaw. I only knew “Take Me Out” going into this, as I imagine most people would – maybe one of the other singles is in there somewhere, but their biggest hit is “Take Me Out”, and it stands as a ubiquitous anthem / representation of the 2000s. It’s an all-timer of a track, and thankfully, it’s supplemented by 10 other tracks that are either at the same level or just a step or two below that same level of quality, making for a fucking killer debut album. If the “worst” one here is only as bad as it is because nobody really wants to have a track about being a cheater in their playlist (& because the album tackles it a bit more tastefully with “Tell Her Tonight” earlier on), whilst still kinda rocking in its own weird way, then you’ve got a stellar lineup going. The music more than speaks for itself, with every track finding a super infectious groove – the bass is awesome, the guitar riffs are sick, the percussion has a good punch / pace to it, and Alex Kapranos’ lead vocals have a range that feels like it can channel David Bowie, Chris Martin & Morrissey (for once, as a compliment) at the same time, whilst still being able to hit higher pitches & quirkier tones that feel kinda like David Byrne in the “More Songs About Buildings And Food” era of Talking Heads. His vocals don’t carry the album, but they do elevate it, which is kinda rare for an album that feels so instrumentally driven. I don’t really want to go too deep track-by-track here, so I’ll just quickly explain what I liked about my favorite ones, even though the whole album was great from top-to-bottom. “Jacqueline” is a really good (& kinda morbidly funny) opener. “The Dark of the Matinee” feels like an Arctic Monkeys cut in the best way. “Auf Achse” has a fun dichotomy between the funky mood & the sad lyrics, whilst reminding me a lot of The Human League. “Darts of Pleasure” feels like a Talking Heads cut in an awesome way, & “Michael” fucking rules as an explicitly erotic track with a super catchy vibe. The *one* little thing I mentioned is in the track order; I think “Come on Home” should’ve ended the album. I think it just makes more thematic sense after the implied suicidal thoughts of “40’”, and the melancholic tones feel like they’d make for a good bookend with “Jacqueline”. Regardless, “40’” is still a pretty good closing track, and as a whole, the entire album just fucking rules. I’m mad at myself for not listening to the whole thing until today, but I’m glad to have rectified it, I’m glad it’s on the list, and it’s easily deserving of all the acclaim it gets. It’s a 10, and it’s right up there with “Hot Fuss” as one of those timeless albums of the era. 2004 was pretty good for rock, huh?

Favourite Song: Take Me Out

solid 3 without this fire and take me out

Clásico

One of my favorite bands of all time

Already fan of this album. Peak. Michael is stuck in my head always.

If Franz Ferdinand didn’t want to get shot he shouldn’t have written a song called “Take Me Out”!

guitar scratched my brain so hard, i had to listen to it three times in a row

so happy I finally listend to that album

Take me out…a classic🌟

Oh hell yeah, now we're talkin'! Top: Michael Not Top: Jacqueline

10/10

I like it when a band sounds like its members all like to read, but also like dancing. Alex Kapranos especially sounds like he's probably got a fantastic bookshelf in his home. This album came out when I was 20. I love it just as much as a 42-year-old as I did back then. I'd give this six stars if I could.

I'm editing my review to add this fun story: when I was a child I heard the song Take Me Out while I was sleeping at a cousin's house and woke up wanting to remember it so bad bc it was unlike anything I was allowed to listen to in my deeply catholic family. we used to get these lists of new songs, movies, books, etc that we were allowed or not allowed to listen to every week at church, so the media I consumed until about middle school was very limited. by the time we left the church and I started being allowed to listen to popular music, I had forgotten the lyrics and the beat of Take Me Out and was never able to find this song. I have a memory or two of turning on the radio and this song was ending but the dj must've announced the song before playing it bc they didn't announce it after, instead it went right into the next song. It's honestly haunted me for almost two decades trying to figure out what that song was. I finally figured it out listening to this album for 1001 albums and I've since been playing this song A LOT. It's not that I think it's the greatest song ever or anything, it's more just the feeling of solving a mystery that's lasted almost 20 years that I associated heavily with my religious upbringing. Thank you 1001 albums. Fuck the Catholic Church, please donate to your nearest independent abortion clinic, the Midwest Access Coalition, or your nearest small LGBTQ+ resource center.

começou muito forte com Jaqueline talvez uma das minhas músicas favoritas do álbum mas continuou super divertida e diferente da primeira até a última música

Most surprising album so far

timeless classic of indie rock. 5/5

Jupi! Mam na cdju, mi je ljub album. V najstniških letih mi je bil ful všeč ta tip rocka k je v early 2000s mel svoj obdobje (sm bi dala recimo še kake Kaiser Chiefs, The Strokes, The Hives, Kings of Leon, Bloc Party, Arctic Monkeys - and it's not in my head, očitno je to post-punk revival (in ne, nism tok fuknena, da sm mislna, da sm sama odkrila skupne točke tem bandom, I just never googled it :))). Všeč mi je začetek s "Jacqueline", k že misliš, da bo bl chill, po pa suddenly ni. In, oh, še zdaj en ljubših komadov, "Take Me Out". Prou vidim v glavi videospot. Ta odrezanost ritma mi je bla zmer amazing. "The Dark of the Matinée" je ful fajn. Kul je, k dejansko ma dinamiko komad, maš vmes bolj chill dele, ki pa ne delujejo randomly vmeščenih, ampak dejansko s filingom. "Auf Achse" je prou lep. "This Fire" zveni, kot to o čemer je komad in crescenda, kot ogenj, ki na koncu vse zajame. Pozabla sm kok je "Darts of Pleasure" amazing. Pa "Michael". Pa začetek "Come On Home". Pa kok mi je "40'" v bistvu hud. V glavnem, I love it.

album of 2025

The sound of university indie discos, early downloads and time with friends. Not the most original sound, but the album is filled with absolute bangers

starting to wonder why ive never listened to franz ferdinand this goes hard i really like this album woowww favs! genuinely dont know how to pick because at what point do i just put down every song on the album.... it just kept getting better and better as it went 😭 if i HAVE to choose.... take me out, auf asche, michael and '40 are up there

I discovered Franz Ferdinand relatively late in they career, and I was NOT impressed. Really didn't understand what the "buzz" was all about. But now I get it..... It is because this is good shit! I'm not surprised that after an album like this group took off like crazy. This is awesome stuff, pure raw energy. Really, really good!