Seven years have passed since indie-rock legend Franz Ferdinand released an album. Reappearing this year with the utterly disappointing “The Human Fear,” they attract what they fear the most: releasing an underwhelming album. To end this article quickly, there are no hit songs in this album. To keep reading why, the explanation is as follows.

The album starts with the catchy rhythmic strokes of the new guitarist, Dino Bardot, in “Audacious.” Audrey Tait also makes her debut appearance drumming, holding a fun, steady beat. Alex Kapranos gives a blast from the past with a vintage microphone sound akin to the shadow of The Killers’ vocalist, Brandon Flowers. While this was a good start to see where the album is going, it was not a strong song as it was exceptionally dull. The track ended abruptly, not even finishing the song into what it was supposed to be.

One cannot help but get whiplash with the transition to “Everydaydreamer.” The drums hold a fast and low beat, there is nothing too remarkable about it. It has the potential to be a party song but simply the potential, having a muted MGMT feel to it. If it is to be compared to their previous releases, it sounds like they were taking a coffee break from upbeat lively songs this time around.

“The Doctor” followed with high-pitched synths, livelier vocals and overpowering drums. Lyrics tell the story of a patient who does not want to leave and gets sent into a spiral. It is possibly the highlight of the album, yet it still gets repetitive at times.

The chunky synths and chopped repetitive beat of “Hooked” make it an attempt to be a club banger better suited for a Netflix original. It is the complete opposite of the previous songs as if it was made specifically for a fashion runway but made by a dad who wanted to be hip for his kids.

“Build It Up” comes next with a simple riff, yet it has their signature sound and Kapranos’ early aughts vocals make a comeback. This could easily be placed in any of their earlier releases, but not much as a single.

“Night Or Day” transitions easily with spiky keys by Julian Corrie and Kapranos’ baritone vocals. They have always had this steampunk sound, with the drums getting along well on the track and Kapranos’ having a better time. When the band diverges from the indie-sleaze genre that they revel in, the results are lackluster at best.

A tetric, eerie piano starts the ballad “Tell Me I Should Stay.” A minute and seven seconds later, Kapranos’ voice and a simple sliding of the guitar strings turn it into a boring Christmas–y song. There is not much enthusiasm in Kapranos’ voice in this album; it is too sad to be Franz Ferdinand but too happy to be Julian Casablancas.

A nice strumming starts “Cats,” which turns into a rapid guitar and potent drums to pick up the pace. If the album was just the rhythm section, it would be a three-and-a-half-star instrumental album. But as a Franz Ferdinand record, there is a lot to wish for.

“Black Eyelashes” follows as a nod to Kapranos’ Greek heritage, making it a very mixed bag of songs as this Rembetiko-Folk tune does not quite fit in the overall theme of the record. However, as a standalone, it will definitely be played at Greek weddings.

The band gives the listener whiplash once again with “Bar Lonely.” The singer sounds in his element with these types of songs. Bardots’ guitar-playing picks up the slack in the album; but every song in this record is a hit or miss, and none of them hit a bullseye.

“The Birds” ends the album with a high-pitched guitar riff in a lazy tone. Tait loves her cymbals in this track as the songs start off slow and then intensify after a couple of verses, but it gets repetitive. If one listens just for the guitarwork and the drumming, they are definitely in the right place, but it was nothing special.

Kapranos sounds frankly bored compared to the band’s previous records, yet there has been a streak of historically good artists coming back from retirement and people wishing they went back to the studio and re-do their releases, such as The Pixies. It is a decent album to play at an overpriced, hipster, craft sandwich restaurant, but if one wants to find a deeper meaning to the songs, this is not the album for it. A re-listen could make it grow in the listener’s hearts, but it does leave an underwhelming first impression.

Seven years have passed since indie-rock legend Franz Ferdinand released an album. Reappearing this year with the utterly disappointing “The Human Fear,” they attract what they fear the most: releasing an underwhelming album. To end this article quickly, there are no hit songs in this album. To keep reading why, the explanation is as follows.

The album starts with the catchy rhythmic strokes of the new guitarist, Dino Bardot, in “Audacious.” Audrey Tait also makes her debut appearance drumming, holding a fun, steady beat. Alex Kapranos gives a blast from the past with a vintage microphone sound akin to the shadow of The Killers’ vocalist, Brandon Flowers. While this was a good start to see where the album is going, it was not a strong song as it was exceptionally dull. The track ended abruptly, not even finishing the song into what it was supposed to be.

One cannot help but get whiplash with the transition to “Everydaydreamer.” The drums hold a fast and low beat, there is nothing too remarkable about it. It has the potential to be a party song but simply the potential, having a muted MGMT feel to it. If it is to be compared to their previous releases, it sounds like they were taking a coffee break from upbeat lively songs this time around.

“The Doctor” followed with high-pitched synths, livelier vocals and overpowering drums. Lyrics tell the story of a patient who does not want to leave and gets sent into a spiral. It is possibly the highlight of the album, yet it still gets repetitive at times.

The chunky synths and chopped repetitive beat of “Hooked” make it an attempt to be a club banger better suited for a Netflix original. It is the complete opposite of the previous songs as if it was made specifically for a fashion runway but made by a dad who wanted to be hip for his kids.

“Build It Up” comes next with a simple riff, yet it has their signature sound and Kapranos’ early aughts vocals make a comeback. This could easily be placed in any of their earlier releases, but not much as a single.

“Night Or Day” transitions easily with spiky keys by Julian Corrie and Kapranos’ baritone vocals. They have always had this steampunk sound, with the drums getting along well on the track and Kapranos’ having a better time. When the band diverges from the indie-sleaze genre that they revel in, the results are lackluster at best.

A tetric, eerie piano starts the ballad “Tell Me I Should Stay.” A minute and seven seconds later, Kapranos’ voice and a simple sliding of the guitar strings turn it into a boring Christmas–y song. There is not much enthusiasm in Kapranos’ voice in this album; it is too sad to be Franz Ferdinand but too happy to be Julian Casablancas.

A nice strumming starts “Cats,” which turns into a rapid guitar and potent drums to pick up the pace. If the album was just the rhythm section, it would be a three-and-a-half-star instrumental album. But as a Franz Ferdinand record, there is a lot to wish for.

“Black Eyelashes” follows as a nod to Kapranos’ Greek heritage, making it a very mixed bag of songs as this Rembetiko-Folk tune does not quite fit in the overall theme of the record. However, as a standalone, it will definitely be played at Greek weddings.

The band gives the listener whiplash once again with “Bar Lonely.” The singer sounds in his element with these types of songs. Bardots’ guitar-playing picks up the slack in the album; but every song in this record is a hit or miss, and none of them hit a bullseye.

“The Birds” ends the album with a high-pitched guitar riff in a lazy tone. Tait loves her cymbals in this track as the songs start off slow and then intensify after a couple of verses, but it gets repetitive. If one listens just for the guitarwork and the drumming, they are definitely in the right place, but it was nothing special.

Kapranos sounds frankly bored compared to the band’s previous records, yet there has been a streak of historically good artists coming back from retirement and people wishing they went back to the studio and re-do their releases, such as The Pixies. It is a decent album to play at an overpriced, hipster, craft sandwich restaurant, but if one wants to find a deeper meaning to the songs, this is not the album for it. A re-listen could make it grow in the listener’s hearts, but it does leave an underwhelming first impression.