Darts of Pleasure

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Glasgow rocks

It's been a while since anything has piqued my interest, but trust it to come from across the pond. Imagine the Strokes sounding better than the Strokes, with a bit of the Fall and an upbeat Joy Division mixed in. Franz Ferdinand has a stylish garage rock sound that is able to elude the trappings of any one particular genre. As you can tell, it may not be easy to pinpoint their particular sound, but that's one of the challenges of attempting to describe something so new and fresh.

Written by Jude Uy

Good Up Until The Demos

When this EP was only a CD-Single, featuring DARTS OF PLEASURE, VAN TANGO, and SHOPPING FOR BLOOD, I'd give it 5 stars. All three of those are very good songs. This release of it, however, does not display the same good qualities. Why? Distinctly because of the demos. Here's what I have to say about the songs:

DARTS OF PLEASURE--Franz Ferdinand's very first released song displays their musical abilities very well. With a very good bass line, and a catchy tune to sing along to, this is one you'l…

When this EP was only a CD-Single, featuring DARTS OF PLEASURE, VAN TANGO, and SHOPPING FOR BLOOD, I'd give it 5 stars. All three of those are very good songs. This release of it, however, does not display the same good qualities. Why? Distinctly because of the demos. Here's what I have to say about the songs:

DARTS OF PLEASURE--Franz Ferdinand's very first released song displays their musical abilities very well. With a very good bass line, and a catchy tune to sing along to, this is one you'll enjoy. Featuring vocals by Alex Kapranos, Nick McCarthy, Bob Hardy, and Paul Thomson.

VAN TANGO--Many would notice the differences between this song and the last: it features keyboards, it's more alternative instead of rock, and the lead guitarist is singing on lead vocals. But the two songs do have one thing in common, and that is that they are each as good as the other. Featuring vocals by Nick McCarthy, Alex Kapranos, and Paul Thomson.

SHOPPING FOR BLOOD--This song could easily be described as a darker mix of the first two songs. It's lead sung by Alex Kapranos again, but it features keyboards again. Unlike either of the pervious songs, though, it features a very heavy, dark bass line which, when mixed echoing keyboard effects, comes out with a chilling sound. It's quite a good song, with very well chosen instrument selections. Featuring vocals by Alex Kapranos, Nick McCarthy, and Paul Thomson.

TELL HER TONIGHT [HOME DEMO]--I seriously hope that this song was SUPPOSED to be as bad as it turned out. Because it turned out AWFUL. So awful that it's funny. Alex Kapranos's voice is cracking as he makes it higher than it was ever meant to be, Nick McCarthy's backup singing is going out of tune...etcetera. It's one big mishap of a song. Featuring vocals by Alex Kapranos, Nick McCarthy, and Paul Thomson.

DARTS OF PLEASURE [HOME DEMO]--I admit that this demo isn't as bad as the last. But it has its bad moments. For example, during the chorus, you can distinctly hear the singing dropping out of tune at one point. Still, it's interesting to hear something different. Featuring vocals by Alex Kapranos and Nick McCarthy.

So my final say is 3.5/5.

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Written by Maxim

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Darts of Pleasure