The success of the band Franz Ferdinand has been rather heartwarming. Recently, they've been all over the UK media, and have just had a #3 single in the Real Charts with "Take Me Out", despite its radio-unfriendliness in having a fairly unconnected "prologue" before the song starts proper. The radio stations simply clipped this part out altogether, making the single not only more instantly engaging in form, but no doubt more attractive to ruthless programme schedulers in length.
My readers might recall that last May, two skinny Scotsmen from the group appeared on my doorstep here in Highgate, asking for my services. Sadly, it wasn't my body they wanted, but my 1982 Juno 6 syntheziser. In return, they invited me to their concert at The Monarch in Camden, supporting The Futureheads. Despite being in a foul mood for no real good reason, or rather because someone spilt beer on my freshly-drycleaned suit, which on reflection is a <i>perfectly good</i> reason, I did nevertheless enjoy their set, which put me in mind of early Talking Heads, Monochrome Set, and Josef K.
Now they're proper pop stars. They are presumably freed from having to play the foul old Monarch again, or having to borrow instruments from foul old me again. I imagine they're now busy lounging in a big golden limousine, sipping nectar from the upturned armpits of Brewer Street rent boys.
I'm not sure what's happened to The Futureheads. Given they were headlining over Franz Ferdinand, and the latter are now Number Three, I presumed they were Number One, and gingerly tuned into Top Of The Pops the other week. But no, the prime position was occupied by some ghastly behemoth of a girl from the depressing TV karaoke talent show, Faustian Pact Idol.
Perhaps the Futureheads' turn is still to come. Their average age is, after all, 21, and youth on one's side is always an undeniable asset when trying to 'make it'. Franz Ferdinand, I hope they won't chide me for saying, are no inchoate ingenues when it comes to playing in bands. Their Rock Family Tree lineage includes the groups Pro Forma, whom I saw at Ladyfest the year before, The Karelia, and The Yummy Fur. That a member of The Yummy Fur would ever have a proper, Top 5 chart hit must rank up there with similar musings on White Town and Chumbawamba. But done it they have, and good for them.
A further vague connection of interest that I've only recently discovered, is that Franz Ferdinand singer Alex's former fops-in-suits band The Karelia had their album produced by Bid. Bid then covered one of their songs, "The Spell" on the first Scarlet's Well album. So it all fits. I was initially thrown by his change in surname, from Huntley to Kapranos.
I'm sure there's a good reason why he changed his name like that. Perhaps someone spilled beer on his suit.
