"Darts of Pleasure" is the debut single of

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

-based indie rock band

Franz Ferdinand Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria, (18 December 1863 – 28 June 1914) was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary. His assassination in Sarajevo was the most immediate cause of World War I. Fr ...

, released in the United Kingdom on 8 September 2003 through Domino Records. The song entered the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

at number 44 on 15 September 2003, where it stayed for one week. The band were happy with its chart performance, commenting "we couldn't believe we were in the UK top 50."

History and content

The band developed its reputation by supporting

Hot Hot Heat Hot Hot Heat is a Canadian indie rock band from Victoria, British Columbia, formed in 1999. The band was signed by Seattle label Sub Pop in 2001 and released its first EP, ''Knock Knock Knock'', and first full-length album, '' Make Up the Break ...

and

Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...

. ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' editor Connor McNicholas said, "My first contact with Franz Ferdinand was when someone was playing the ''Darts of Pleasure'' demos, in the NME office, and it was genuinely one of those moments when a track goes on and I come bundling out of my office saying 'what the hell is this because this is amazing'". It was therefore no surprise the band won the "Phillip Hall Radar Award" at the

NME Awards The ''NME'' Awards is an annual music awards show in the United Kingdom, founded by the music magazine ''NME'' (''New Musical Express''). The first awards show was held in 1953 as the ''NME'' Poll Winners Concerts, shortly after the founding of ...

of 2004 (announced in late 2003). Furthermore, NME described the band as "The Next Big Thing" and featured the band on the front cover describing them as "The Band That Will Change Your Life".

Alex Kapranos Alexander Paul Kapranos Huntley (born 20 March 1972) is a Scottish musician, singer, songwriter, record producer and author. He is best known as the lead singer and guitarist of Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand. He has also been a part of the ...

explained to '' Q'' magazine that "the song is about seduction and the 'Darts of Pleasure' that hit you are actually words." The song ends with several lyrics in German, most famously the line "''Ich heiße Super Fantastisch''!" ("My name is Super-Fantastic!", whereas "Super-Fantastic" is the name, not an adjective. Although variations in the German language occur, making the true meaning "I am called Super-Fantastic!").

Release and reception

"Darts of Pleasure" was released on 8 September 2003. The single was received well with

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

giving it a rating of 8.3.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

gave it 3.5 stars and the ''

'' gave a very enthusiastic response. With the release Franz were acclaimed as "the saviours of rock and roll" by

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

who gave them airtime.

Track listings

Lead vocals are performed by

except on "Van Tango" and "Tell Her Tonight", performed by

Nick McCarthy Nicholas John McCarthy (born 13 December 1974 in Blackpool, England) is an English-German musician. His main focus is on songwriting and song production. He is also a guitarist, singer and keyboard player. McCarthy was the guitarist, backing/ ...

. UK 7-inch :A. "Darts of Pleasure" :B. "Shopping for Blood" UK CD and 12-inch single # "Darts of Pleasure" # "Van Tango" # "Shopping for Blood" US CD EP # "Darts of Pleasure" # "Van Tango" # "Shopping for Blood" # "Tell Her Tonight" (home demo) # "Darts of Pleasure" (home demo)

Personnel

*Alex Kapranos – lead vocals, lead and rhythm guitar, prudction * Bob Hardy – bass guitar, backing vocals * Nick McCarthy – rhythm and lead guitar, backing vocals * Paul Thomson – drums, percussion, backing vocals * Tore Johansson - production * Adrian Breakspear – assistant engineering

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darts of Pleasure 2003 debut singles 2003 songs Domino Recording Company singles Franz Ferdinand (band) songs Macaronic songs Songs written by Alex Kapranos Songs written by Bob Hardy (bassist) Songs written by Nick McCarthy Songs written by Paul Thomson