Franz Ferdinand explore the human fear in Portsmouth
The indie rock legends visit the great waterfront city as part of their ‘Greater Glasgow European Cultural Exchange’ Tour, promoting their seventh album ‘The Human Fear’.
★★★½☆
Photo: Press
Franz Ferdinand are currently in the middle of their 2026 tour across Europe, bringing their latest record and dance-rock staples to the masses. Tuesday saw the iconic five-piece make their way to Portsmouth for an electrifying night at the Guildhall.
A formidable warm-up came in the form of support Home Counties, who carved a niche between the night’s headliners and Metronomy — equal parts indie rock, dance-pop and youthful sneer. The camaraderie between the group’s members onstage — particularly lead vocalists Lois Kelly and Will Harrison — was palpable; tracks Bethnal Green and You Break It, You Bought It delivered irresistible earthly delights.
Oddly, Franz Ferdinand never mentioned their ‘new’ album by name — The Human Fear — which saw a large number of its tracks make the setlist. Maybe even they knew the tracks chosen were a bit of a mixed bag. While singles Night and Day and Hooked shone, less typically Franz-y cuts The Doctor, Black Eyelashes and Bar Lonely met a tepid reception at best, perhaps a step too far for a crowd who roared for the hits.
It’s a shame because the record has its fair share of no-nonsense, knife-edged riffs and signature dishes. Build It Up would have made a welcome appearance, as would The Birds, which could find a home on any earlier album. The set was heavily weighted toward the group’s debut and sophomore efforts (Franz Ferdinand, You Could Have It So Much Better), which makes sense given that it spawned the group’s most enduring hits. But in doing so, much of their later gems were overlooked: Glimpse of Love, Curious and Billy Goodbye. All were made for the live setting.
When the hits were played, the execution wasn’t guaranteed. Opener The Dark of the Matinee, for instance (a track that perfectly embodies the art-school-boys-gone-bad sound) came out rushed, as if they wanted to sweep through the first act as quickly as possible. Classics Do You Want To and Darts of Pleasure were positively supersonic, but fan favourite Michael and No You Girls lacked the heart demanded for such explosive, such live set pieces.
Take Me Out, which appeared near the end of the main set, was a foregone roof-raiser — still one of the best rock anthems of all time — and Outsiders saw a lengthy rendition that showcased the group’s live feracity. Evil Eye, a personal favourite, doubled down on the ‘spooky’ synth section of the original. It was different, but no less exciting.
Frontman Alex Kapranos, of course, is a born performer. He buzzed off the energy from the audience, noting the obligatory nature of the phrase “do you want one more song?” with a boyish grin all over his face. The crowd were like a parish possessed.
Franz Ferdinand put on a blaze of a show — they always do — delighting diehard fans with a half glass full of greatest hits and off-cuts. But, as I stood in the dark of the Guildhall, witnessing the set unfold, I couldn’t shake the feeling I’d seen them bigger and better some years prior. They were touring a ‘very best of’ at that point (2022’s Hits to the Head), but it made for a show with zero filler. This time around, it was a hit-and-miss affair and, though the group landed most of their punches, it was far from a total knockout.
