"Auf Achse" by Franz Ferdinand, March 11, 2021

For a short time in the early '00s indie rock was king. I loved turning on MuchMusic (later Fuse) and seeing the latest cheaply made videos. Some of these groups pierced the Top 40 radio stations, like The Strokes, Modest Mouse, and this band, Franz Ferdinand. The song "Take Me Out" was the only song I knew of this band. This album came out in 2004, but it wasn't until junior year of college in 2008 that I listened to it fully. From start to finish, the band's self-title debut was energetic and puts you in the mood for college parties. The only problem was, I was kind of a loner and sober back then. 

SHE'S NOT SO SPECIAL. In 2003 a Scottish rock band that took on the name of the assigned heir to the throne of the Austria-Hungarian Empire recorded their debut album in Sweden. The track I chose to write about, Auf Achse, is a German saying that literal means "on the axle," but idiomatically, it means "on the road." The song is a reference to a long-running German drama by the same name. Having not watched the show, I wonder if the song references the characters. Or does it mean that you should hit the road if you're rejected? "She's not so special, now look what you've done boy." Oh dear. Violence? This particular track isn't a stand out hit from Franz Ferdinand's 2004 debut, but it does embody the spirit of the album. Dancey guitars and grooving bass lines make the lyrics slip past you for a few listens. However, when tracks like "Jacqueline," "Dark of the Matinee," or "Michael" hit, you realize you've been a bit hypnotized by the music. This song relies on repetition for verse and chorus, but packs a lot of punch in its bridge.

YOU WANT HER, YOU CAN'T HAVE HER. I woke up to this song this morning, and it shaped my day. It reminded me of Saturday nights, driving to Chattanooga. It was decompressing from a strict Adventist campus that only served vegetarian food and no coffee. This album served as an escape into some needed introversion away from my roommate, away from some of the people who seemed a bit exhausting, no matter how nice they were. It was my go-to album for driving to the book stores--a secondhand warehouse of secondhand everything-media. Then to Barnes & Nobel and Books-A-Million across the street. Pick up a coffee and a burger and head back to campus. Nowadays, dating a med-school student, I have some weekends like this again before the tests. A needed weekend of introversion, when I should go shopping for clothes as I've been avoiding that since the pandemic. I should get a haircut. I should file my taxes. There are lots of things to do, but after the first full week of school, I just want to listen to Franz Ferdinand and do close to nothing.