A Scottish band, Franz Ferdinand was formed in Scotland in 2002.  The members had played in various bands in the 1990s, and  Alex Kapranos and Paul Thomson played together in a band called Yummy Fur.  Kapranos recruited Nicholas McCarthy and Bob Hardy.  They performed together for about a year,

Franz Ferdinand

While we have very classic tastes, the four of us get together and it’s really broad-ranging. Nick likes Arabic music and Paul likes hardcore electronica, so I think that’s come out in the music.

Getting Started

A Scottish band, Franz Ferdinand was formed in Scotland in 2002.  The members had played in various bands in the 1990s, and  Alex Kapranos and Paul Thomson played together in a band called Yummy Fur.  Kapranos recruited Nicholas McCarthy and Bob Hardy.  They performed together for about a year, before signing a recording contract with Domino Records, an independent recording company.  

They released their debut album, Franz Ferdinand, in 2004, preceded by the initial single, Take Me Out, the month before.  The single was a hit, going to #3 on the UK charts.  The single, This Fire, was released for  download only and reached #17 on the US Hot Modern Tracks list and #8 on the UK Download chart, becoming an mp3 hit.  The album certified platinum in the US and 4x platinum in the UK.

Building On a Solid Foundation

The album was an enormous success, winning awards internationally.  They received the Ireland based Mercury prize, the British Ivor Novella Award, and the Philip Hall Radar Award from the UK-based NME Awards.  The single, Take Me Out, took first place in the Australian Hottest 100, and US-based MTV Awards bestowed the Breakthrough Video Award.  Take Me Out received a Q Award in the UK for Best Video.  

Their second album, Your Could Have it So Much Better, was released in 2005.  They experimented with new sounds, not wanting to create a duplicate of their former effort.  Critical review was favorable; critics favored this album over the first; it debuted at #1 in the UK and at #8 in the US.  Despite its warm reception, sales could not match those of their debut.  It certified platinum in the UK and gold in the US.  Four singles were released, with Do You Want To making the Top Ten in the UK and the US.

Here and Now

In early 2009, Franz Ferdinand released their third album, Tonight: Franz Ferdinand.  It peaked at #2 on the UK charts and at #3 in the US.  The single, Lucid Dreams was launched through iTunes, available for free streaming or for mp3 download, but not on the radio.  No Your Girl  received some radio play and is being used on an iPod advertisement.  They launched a 19-date tour of the US and are currently one of the bands opening for Green Dan on the their 21^st Century Breakdown World Tour.

Did you know . . .

1. The band's name is taken from the racehorse named Archduke Ferdinand.  They liked the alliteration in the name, and the implied relationship to the actual Archduke, whose assassination was the start of World War I.

2. While on tour promoting their second album, Franz Ferdinand broke the record for the longest run at the Alexandra Palace in North London by playing four sold out nights in November and December of 2005.

3. Their single, Ulysses, released from their third album, received almost no attention the US or the UK, but charted at #2 and #3 in Spain and Japan, respectively.

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