The Ping - Franz Ferdinand, Archdukes of Glasgow

I sat down and watched the 2004 Grammy Awards ceremony in its entirety -- my first in many, many years. I was waiting to catch a performance by a great upcoming band called Robert Randolph & the Family Band. Fantastic music, kids. Check 'em out. Unfortunately, not the focus of this ping, though.

I'd started to hear buzz about this group named after an Austro-Hungarian Archduke. They hailed from Scotland, Glasgow to be precise. And their music was poised to take America by storm with a giant explosion of Brit-Punk sporting an 80s flair. Ladies and Gentlemen...Franz Ferdinand.

My introduction to these guys had occurred while playing an EA Sports game -- either MVP or Madden, don't remember which. The song was "Take Me Out". It later gained worldwide airplay and became the official song of the PlayStation Portable device commercials.

After they performed on the Grammys I had to hear more. They were raw excitement on stage. I walked on into my PC, hopped onto iTunes and bought their self-titles debut album, Franz Ferdinand. Keep in the mind, the band had not finished playing their Grammy set more than 5 minutes at this point.

The album is a 100% piece of platinum. There's not a single riff on this album that isn't catchy. Nothing complex or too ornate, just the classic 2 guitar, 1 bass and 1 drum kit configuration. it is clear when listening to their music, these guys have a fun wit and charm about them.

Franz Ferdinand contains odes to women ("Jacqueline"), subtle sexual references ("Darts of Pleasure"), and even some sort of homoerotic or cross-dressing tune ("Michael"). But it's more than just sex. "Tell Her Tonight" is a head-bobbing throwback of a song. But for me, I'm still a fan of "Take me Out". Its guitar and tough licks in the opening to the way it resolves into the main tune. Man, these guys rock.

They recently released their much-anticipated second effort You Could Have It So Much Better. In truth I think it was met with mixed reviews. Most of what I read praised them for a strong sophomore album, but it was much the same sound as the first album. To me, more is better with Franz Ferdinand. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, I say. Why should they change their sound or mess with a winning formula?

You Could Have It So Much Better is loaded with good stuff. You could say there are fewer intentionally subtle sexual references, but perfection nonetheless. Their first single release from the album, "Do You Want To", is apparently a series of dialogues as overheard at a party. A great song, indeed. There just isn't a bad track on this album.

If there's one thing I hear more of on this album over the first, it is the presence of offbeat drumming and high hat cymbal. On a personal note, I always find myself playing the drum kit on my steering wheel while driving. I can usually get the drums to an entire album down in about a week or so. I'm still trying to figure out drummer Paul Thomson's technique. I don't play air guitar and belt out tunes in the car...I play the drums and belt out tunes. And this album is a real challenge on that front.

I consider both Franz Ferdinand and their follow-up You Could Have It So Much Better 4 out of 5 stars on my unofficial, highly technical rating system. Get 'em now!