6 Worst Cases Of Second Album Syndrome

5. Franz Ferdinand - You Could Have It So Much Better

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDwaDIbrfxA One track that can at least be recommended: "Do You Want To". A Kraut-Disco stomper which recalled the addictive dance-floor energy of "The Dark of the Matinée" from the bands debut. The title says it all, and we really did have it so much better on Franz Ferdinand's debut which took the UK by storm in 2004 (has it really been 10 years already?). Just a year later Franz Ferdinand released their second album and perhaps they should have let these songs mature for a little longer, as label pressure to capitalise on their instant success seems very likely here. You Could Have It So Much Better is not a bad album, far from it. It was also a hit, so why is it included here? Franz had been everywhere, their videos on constant rotation, their songs played in every club around the country and in all honesty, perhaps we needed a break; maybe some time to miss them, ready then to welcome them back with open arms. It felt like the equivalent of the in-laws coming round for the weekend and then surprising you by staying on for another week. You may feign delight but in reality you have had just about enough of them. Neither as immediate or as infectious as their debut and practically screaming of overkill, You Could Have It So Much Better could have profited from a delay, a chance to let the public soak up their great debut before unleashing their follow-up on an audience which would then have been ravenous for more. As it was, it all felt like too much, too soon. It's a shame, because obviously - it could of been so much better.