You Could Have It So Much Better is the hugely anticipated second album from Franz Ferdinand. After setting the world alight with their self-titled debut album the boys didn?t hang around too long before getting started on the follow up. Recorded in Scotland and New York, the band?s style has matured and developed. The sound is still unmistakably Franz Ferdinand but they?ve tapped into something deeper and more resonant from the moving epic "Walk Away" to the stomp of first single "Do You Want To". Review Franz Ferdinand's Mercury-winning debut probably graced just as many coffee-tables as indie sound-systems in 2004, thanks to the universal hype. But thankfully You Could Have It So Much Better isn't simply a re-tread of their debut. It's a more dynamic and more rewarding listen that sees band leaning less heavily on their gaunt 'n' groovy rhythm section. In fact, on "Eleanor Put Your Boots On" and"Fade Together", the bass and drums resign entirely, making way for two wistful piano ballads. Alex Kapranos' observations are more playful here than before, but his delivery remains as sharp as ever. "Who gives a damn about the profits at Tesco?" he asks on ballsy opener, "The Fallen". He's clearly revelling in new his role as today's Jarvis Cocker. Heck, the "laa-la-la-la-la-laa" refrain in "Well That Was Easy" is nabbed directly from Pulp's "Monday Morning". Had they stuck to their infamous 'music to make girls dance' ethos here, the Franz formula would have worn thin very quickly. Instead, it's been fleshed out. There is more to life than punk-funk after all. --Jack Smith This link will take you off in a new window