New album – Franz Ferdinand: Retro is now retro itself

In 2005 I was too young to be old. And too old to be young. And I was a bit desperate. Somehow I couldn’t find the right connection to new music. I regularly bought the new Oasis album or the new record from Paul McCartney. And then I listened to that. But otherwise? In the evening I was sitting in the car after work. It rained. I waited at a traffic light. The moderator announced a new band from Great Britain, with the silly name Franz Ferdinand. And then came “do you want to”. A great song! Exciting! I scribbled the band name on the parking meter and decided to investigate the one. I found that I had apparently not been so ignorant that the whole world raved from the previous year for this band because of the debut album and that there were a lot of hits. What I also liked was that she was somehow based on this human-machine style of Kraftwerk, Russian constructivism or something, and the post-punk guitar music of the early 80s. I was blown away.

And then the fantastic video for “Do You Want To”, which plays on a blown vernissage of an art exhibition, which is then mixed up by Franz Ferdinand so that everyone dancing: “I love your friends they all so ary, oh yeah”. Clear. Of course that was somehow retro. But I was back. “I was Lucky, Lucky, Lucky!” The whole new British band wave tore me away.

I am no longer interested in a lot that I thought was great back then. But I remained true to Franz Ferdinand. The album »Tonight« 2009 was great. But then the band got going. While the 2013 album »Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action« worked as a half -hearted excuse for the experiments. In 2015 the great cooperation album came with the Sparks, with which both bands developed, but somehow also returned to their roots. It’s a shame that it never got the recognition it deserves. “Always Ascending” 2018 I expected hot and was deeply disappointed. What a flat and boring album.

Now the new album is there and I’m so happy! “The Human Fear” sounds like this after 2005 that I had to see whether someone was rummaging in the studio waste bucket. But no: everything new! The album, which was promised to us at the time with the slogan »Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action«. Entiring bit by bit. Retro bands are now retro. In 2013 Alex Kapranos still said that he wanted to try to do something new. In the meantime, he says: “Don’t stop just because it sounds old fashioned!” His music should listen to Franz Ferdinand. I like it. Because now I’m really old. Kapranos and I are the same year.

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And when I listen to the new record, I have the feeling that he only makes these songs for me. It’s a bit self -centered, I know. But already the Beatleske single »Audacious« – what a song! Or “Everydaydreamer”: a enthusiastic tone change anthem with 80s billig sounds, would also have fit well on “tonight”. At the intro of “The Doctor”, one believes first, FM, the old NDW band from the 80s, is back. Sounds strongly after an exciting cooperation that Kapranos could think about. And “Hooked” sounds like a broken C64 or after a jump in Human League’s debut plate. But a very cool jump. And so it continues, but I can’t think of any further half -baked comparisons. The only drawback, as with all albums since “Tonight”: an extremely boring cover that just pretends it is interesting. But who cares about the cover in the streaming age?

Franz Ferdinand: »The Human Fear« (Domino Records/Goodtogo)