Franz Ferdinand, Glasgow’s most eminent art-college band turned international rock stars, close the main stage on the first night of Latitude. According to frontman Alex Kapranos, Franz Ferdinand set out to prove that art-rock could involve “really, really catchy tunes that girls can dance to”.
With hits like ‘Take Me Out’, ‘Michael’ and “Do You Want To” they developed the winning formula of choppy, post-punk guitars and Kapranos’ cultivated, Bowie-esque vocals. Since they emerged onto UK indie scene in 2004 Franz Ferdinand have had few problems in becoming one of the country’s most successful bands – with a Mercury Music Prize, an Ivor Novello and two Brit Awards, no less, to their name.
The band are currently on a small tour of Scotland, road testing material from their forthcoming third album in tiny sweatboxes in preparation for their open air performances over the summer. With an arsenal of catchy songs and a few canny cover versions in their back catalogue (Air’s “Sexy Boy” and Pulp’s “Misshapes” among them) their headline slot on Friday will be the first big hitter of the Latitude weekend. Certainly, they’ve proven to be one of the most thrilling live bands we’ve seen on stage – so we’ll see you down the front for this one.
NAT DAVIES