Franz Ferdinand - You Can Have It So Much Better

Released 3rd October 2005, Domino

What I thought then...
The first second album of the bunch, if that made sense. Franz Ferdinand laid out their stall with their 2004 debut, and this provided the gin-laced decorative cake. It was more of the same, only more so.

What I think now...
Still sounds pretty crisp and smart, each song delivered with an arch eyebrow. Possibly one or two tracks too long, but this is the most I’ve enjoyed re-listening to an album so far. It’s made me curious to go re-listen to the rest of their catalogue, which again hasn’t happened so far. As is the way these days, several of these tracks will now work they way into my daily playlists.

Standout Track
Once every couple of years, slap bang in the middle of a night out, I’ll suddenly hear Do You Want To for the first time in ages. And it makes me dance like an idiot.

Live Memories
I saw them co-headline V with Scissor Sisters, both of them riding off the back of largely successful debuts released some time before, and playing new songs of albums still a way off from release. It was an odd experience going into a headline set and not recognising a large chunk of the material, but I do remember them arriving on stage to the 1980s Doctor Who theme, and Do You Want To was already a family favourite by then. I’ve also got a strong memory of Evil And A Heathen echoing around the stage. Plus they joined Scissor Sisters right at the end for a cover of Suffragette City.

What Happened Next?
Third album was a while coming, but managed decent returns. The fourth album passed me by completely, and now they’re in a supergroup with Sparks. As you do.

Next Time: TOP OF THE POPS!

Previously: Employment | The Futureheads | Capture/Release | A Certain Trigger | Introduction