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The Airborne Toxic Event and Franz Ferdinand

We went to a concert last Saturday. I bought the tickets on mad impulse just before my job went into freefall. The mad impulse was because I had only heard one song by the first band at that point. But I loved it, loved it, loved it. So after I had bought the tickets I bought the album and didn't love it on first listen, but it grew on me--BUT I knew my husband wouldn't like it. So I told him to listen to it and the Monday before the show he sends me an email that says, "You were right. I don't like it."

Aggghhhh!!!

But I heard the band live on the radio and they were more amazing live so I convinced him. Plus he likes Franz Ferdinand more than I do. In retrospect he gave in more easily than I expected. Must be the meds.

It was part of a two night show by my favorite radio station called "Miracle on Tremont Street." The second night was The Black Kids (how do they get away with that name?) and Vampire Weekend, and I'm sorry I'm just not that into VW.

So the show was terrific. The venue, the Orpheum Theater, is a great place to see shows and we had very good seats, the second closest we've ever been at the Orpheum. Unfortunately we were on the front corner of a section so we tended to have people crossing in front of us during the set changes.

We only caught the last two songs of the opening act and were quite underwhelmed.

This is the song that I love by The Airborne Toxic Event:


This is the same song done acoustically--squee.


My husband had to agree that they are better live--you have to love a rock band with a viola player. During the show the bassist played his bass with a bow on some songs. I think they need a good producer to really tighten them up while keeping the rawness--rather as Eno did for U2. The album is a little overproduced and several songs have the same shape as if they can't trust a song to just be but need to add the crashing guitars each time.

This is the second single done acoustically as well. I NEED to get an album of the acoustic stuff.


And this is also the acoustic version and very funny:


The name is from a Don Delillo book in case you are wondering. Followed by a band named after the assassinated Archduke. Gotta love it.

Franz Ferdinand came out of Scotland in 2002 as part of that new British Invasion (that somehow also contained The Killers f(O_o)

I first saw the second half of this video and told my husband that he would love it. I was right.
(The embedding has been disabled so here's the link)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QM4dxI0mO1k

You have to watch until at least the minute mark to really appreciate the genius of Franz Ferdinand.

My husband said that he understood why I like TATE so much--it's a lyric band. The lyrics are full of longing, loneliness and loss.

FF on the other hand is not so much about lyrics--although they are often clever.
This is my favorite song by them:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_uhyeVrkig

I think the lyrics are hilarious! "Not to look you in the shoes, but the eyes." Even funnier if you know who Terry Wogan is.

Both bands were brilliant live--serious musicianship and showmanship, which I was not entirely expecting.
On this song, as in this live version, they ended by all four band members and a roadie playing on the drum set with no other instruments. Amazing.


I also found that the lead singer sounded even better live. That doesn't happen that often.

And one last one--for Musing--smexy...

Comments

Anonymous said…
You might have earned TATE a new fan! I likee the first song a lot!
musingwoman said…
Thanks for the smexy. :)

And I'd not heard of Airborne Toxic Event before. Glad you introduced me (I think I have a crush already on their lead guitarist).
Unknown said…
He is adorable isn't he?

I'm glad to have spread the knowledge of TATE around!
Unknown said…
Hey, that "Brit Invasion" was more like a "we want to be a Brit band from the 80's (or Talking Heads, in the case of Franz Ferdinand), especially Jesus and Mary Chain" and included The Bravery, I'd say... and also propelled Modest Mouse (who doesn't quite fit here) to some prominence. Ne? Or would you classify those things differently? I always focused on what the bands sounded like (and The Killers blatantly took their name from a New Order video) rather than where they were from. But I also avoided most radio like the plague back then...
Unknown said…
Hi, Matt,
I'd totally agree with that assessment (and it's so funny that you said that about TH and FF--I completely thought that at the concert). There's bands I always assume are British and then find out they aren't, even from the 80's, like Berlin or Vampire Weekend now. Plus The Killers hit it big in England before here.

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