For the most part, British indie-mania of the 00s involved a slew of sixth-form poets holding forth over amateurishly jerky guitars: the results were often simultaneously brilliant and deeply cringeworthy. Somehow, Franz Ferdinand managed to establish themselves as a tent pole of the scene while wholly bypassing the awkward young upstart vibe. Frontman Alex Kapranos was in his 30s when the band released their debut album, which combined sharp riffs with arch, arty posturing and lugubrious vocals. Kapranos and co were cooler than their contemporaries in both senses: their aesthetic was less messy and their lyrics less bracingly obvious, but they were also less sweatily relatable.
