It wasn’t until I started writing up this review that I realised that tonight marks the eighth time I am seeing Franz Ferdinand. Granted, it’s not been an equal apportionment over the years; it took me eight months to see them the first four times during the era of their incredible debut record, then another 21 years for the next four. Indeed, it’s eight years since the last time in 2017, a stellar show at this same venue under its old Metropolis name. Finally back in support of their new sixth full-length, The Human Fear, it’s a phenomenal return.
First up, though, are New York’s Telescreens and their brand of garage rock with a synth twist—kinda like early Kaiser Chiefs. Frontman Jackson Hamm is an engaging frontman, exuding confidence as he takes on those seated in the balcony section early in the set: “rock n roll is a stand-up activity!” In his wife-beater tee and thick wavy parted hair, he looks distinctly Jim Morrison, and certainly has his showmanship, roaming into the crowd during one song, culminating in the real jewel of the set, the epic Johnny.
Jackson sporadically drops off his mic to sing chunks of the song unplugged, leading the crowd in coordinated finger snaps, before ending the song with a solo played flat on his back. By the time the last song Nothing comes around, he has most of the room singing along to the “you don’t feel nothing!” refrain. “What an amazing group of people!!” declares Jackson at the conclusion of the set. Seems like Montreal won him over during the course of the 40-minute set as much as they won us over!
The mighty Franz Ferdinand arrive to the theme of the classic movie series The Naked Gun, frontman Alex Kapranos throwing poses on the drum rise as the last note rings out. The new record is a glorious return after seven years away from the studio, and by Franz standards, is an incredibly diverse proposition compared to previous offerings. Bar Lonely follows the typical garage rock blueprint and is a perfect start to the set, fitting seamlessly into the catalogue, but the band aren’t afraid to throw in the more experimental moments too.
The Doctor is extremely synth-heavy, giving a distinctly ’80s first-wave vibe in parallel with the bright pink light bars at the back of the stage, which later turn blue on the dance-funk of Everydaydreamer, and its epic bass provided by bassist Bob Hardy, the only other surviving member of the original band lineup alongside Alex.
Alex rocks a mandolin on Black Eyelashes, which, in parallel with its military drums, lands somewhere between a parade and a medieval court scene. Audacious is deliciously stripped-down and lo-fi, with a riff that’s practically verging on ska (but not quite), while Hooked is easily the most electro moment of the whole night, its sludgy beats sounding massive off the MTelus speakers. Kinda bummed they don’t play Cats, but I guess you can’t have it all your own way…
Alex remains a mesmerising frontman throughout, addressing the crowd almost exclusively in French during the night, even during the band introductions at the end (especially amusing to drummer Audrey Tait, who clearly mouths “I’ve got no idea what you’re saying!!” as he points in her direction). At one point, he explains that for the next song only, we should all leave our phones in our pockets, “juste pour le moment entre vous et nous.”
The iconic Take Me Out drops next, and it’s refreshing to see everyone following Alex’s request, with not a phone in sight, and the floor section going absolutely nuts… It truly takes me back to those glory days of 2003/2004 when phones were still way too basic to serve any kind of recording function and remained firmly in pockets throughout a show!
The floor goes pretty nuts throughout the night. The Dark of the Matinée always had the perfect beat for pogo-ing, and it gets the floor bouncing early in the set (myself included!), as do Michael and Do You Want To a few songs later, Alex dropping back to let the crowd sing the outro of “LUCKY LUCKY, YOU’RE SO LUCKY!” at the top of their collective lungs. “Quelle voix ce soir!!!” effuses Alex at the song’s conclusion! Even the sultry, moody Ulysses—a song not particularly conducive to a mosh in any way—sees a good chunk bouncing at the chorus!
The tour debut of the classic Come On Home is an unexpected surprise from that self-titled first record, and still sounds incredible all these years later (as does that whole record, let’s be honest…). This Fire closes out the spectacular 90-minute show under red lights, Alex beckoning the crowd to crouch down during the breakdown before jumping to their feet and losing their minds one last time; absolute scenes!
It caps off another triumphant Franz Ferdinand visit to the 514, and already I can’t wait for show #9!
Franz Ferdinand Setlist
- Bar Lonely
- Walk Away
- The Doctor
- The Dark of the Matinée
- Night or Day
- Michael
- Everydaydreamer
- Love Illumination
- Black Eyelashes
- Do You Want To
- Build It Up
- No You Girls
- Audacious
- Take Me Out
- Hooked
- Outsiders
Encore
- Come On Home
- Evil and a Heathen
- Ulysses
- This Fire
Review – Simon Williams
Photos – Andres Amaya
