On the Stereo: Franz Ferdinand, Ringo Starr
2025 begins with a rejuvenated Franz Ferdinand and Ringo Starr collaborating with T Bone Burnett, winding up with one of his best albums. Plus, Miles Davis Birth of the Blue and Early James.
Franz Ferdinand—The Human Fear [2025]
Like any rock & roll lifers, Franz Ferdinand has stuck around long enough to fall in and out of fashion. The Human Fear, the group's sixth album, arrives while an indie sleaze revival remains on the ascendency, suggesting that the time is ripe for the group to capitalize on a wave of good fortune. Franz Ferdinand does indeed seem rejuvenated on The Human Fear, a byproduct of a substantially overhauled lineup: drummer Audrey Tait and rhythm guitarist Dino Bardot became part of the band after the release of Always Ascending, joining a lineup that now only features two founding members—vocalist/guitarist Alex Kapranos and bassist Bob Hardy. There's a coiled energy to the band's performance that camouflages how the band wears its age in other ways. Kapranos spends the album exploring the parameters of fear, a conceit that allows him to leave his lyrical comfort zone, albeit ever so slightly. Similarly, Franz Ferdinand expands their palette enough to make old tricks seem fresh. "Audacious" swerves from a stuttering syncopated guitar riff worthy of early Strokes to a soaring chorus indebted to glammy Bowie, a juxtaposition that's given wit by Franz Ferdinand's knowing execution. There are other winks and nods scattered through The Human Fear but the record doesn't feel facile, it feels alive and urgent, as if the band themselves are surprised, even delighted, that they can find so many new variants in their signature sound.
Ringo Starr—Look Up [2025]
Look Up provides a nifty companion to Beaucoups of Blues, the country album he knocked out in a few days in the summer of 1970 with producer Pete Drake and a bunch of Nashville cats. The situation with Look Up is similar. Instead of Charlie Daniels and Jerry Reed, Starr is backed by hotshot picker Billy Strings and he's guided through the process by another major-league producer in T Bone Burnett.