Franz Ferdinand Tickets

Franz Ferdinand formed in 2002 in their hometown of Glasgow, with Alex Kapranos on lead guitar and vocals, Bob Hardy on bass, Paul Thompson on drums and Nick McCarthy on rhythm guitar and backing vocals. Though they took their name from the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose assassination in 1914 kick-started the First World War, the band have admitted to simply liking the way the name rolled off the tongue. 

The foursome began generating some buzz around the city after putting on sweaty and spirited gigs and interdisciplinary art shows from the ‘chateau’, their base and rehearsal space in an abandoned warehouse, which arguably influenced their slightly industrial aesthetic. By 2003, the band had signed to Domino Records and were sent to Sweden to record their debut album. Its lead single, Darts of Pleasure, announced Franz Ferdinand’s arrival on to the burgeoning British indie scene, pricking ears with their angular guitar-lead rock and roll. Their next single, Take Me Out, reached No.3 in the UK charts and has since become their biggest hit. 

Though often dubbed art-rock or intelligent rock (as was seemingly custom to anyone wearing a skinny tie or with a short-back-and-sides haircut in the early days of the Millennium), the band actually often eschewed the term, reassuring an interviewer in 2004 that “we make pop music, but it’s quite raw”. 

The self-titled debut released in early 2004 and was brimming with hits, from the jangly, Talking Heads-esque Tell Her Tonight to the disco-ready bop The Dark Of The Matinee. By the end of the year the record had brought the Glaswegians a Mercury Prize and a Grammy nomination. 

The so-called ‘difficult second album’ didn’t seem so difficult for Franz Ferdinand, who decided to record it back in Glasgow this time around. You Could Have It So Much Better entered the UK charts at No.1 and even broke the top ten Stateside, with tracks such as Do You Want To? and Walk Away soon became fan favourites on tour and at festivals.

Though the band had always incorporated a sense groove into their tracks, for their third album Tonight: Franz Ferdinand, Kapranos and co. decided to tap further into their dancier side, working around the loose concept that followed a hedonistic night out – a narrative no doubt familiar to a young band now firmly in the limelight. 

The 2013 follow up Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Actions saw the band return to their scratchy antics while building on their tight, rhythmic punch, borrowing the likes of Todd Terje and Hot Chip(Opens in new tab)’s Alexis Taylor and Joe Goddard on production duties. After curating a Late Night Tales compilation and forming the side project FFS with Sparks, Franz Ferdinand released their fifth album, Always Ascending.

In November 2021, after dropping a series of teasers on social media the band released the new single Billy Goodbye and announced news of a Best Of collection, Hits To The Head.

In 2024, Franz Ferdinand announced their sixth studio album, The Human Fear.