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FFS (an abbreviation of Franz Ferdinand and Sparks) was a supergroup formed by Scottish
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
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 ...
and American
art rock Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that generally reflects a challenging or avant-garde approach to rock, or which makes use of modernist, experimental, or unconventional elements. Art rock aspires to elevate rock from entertainment to an art ...
band Sparks. Their formation was announced on 9 March 2015, but the two bands had been recording since at least the mid-2000s. The group's eponymous debut studio album was recorded in late 2014 and released through the
Domino Recording Company Domino Recording Company or simply Domino is a British independent record label based in London. There is also a wing of the label based in Brooklyn, New York that handles releases in the United States, as well as a German division called Dom ...
in the UK on 8 June and in the US on 9 June 2015.


History


Pre-formation (2004)

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 ...
and Sparks originally began working on music together in 2004, shortly after the release of Franz Ferdinand's eponymous debut studio album, when it was discovered that the two bands were fans of each other. They had sent each other a few demos, one of which was "Piss Off", the twelfth track on ''FFS'', but the two bands were busy with other activities and they were not able to fully record an album together. Sparks' demo recording of "Piss Off" was released on their greatest hits collection ''Past Tense: The Best of Sparks'' in 2019.


Formation and ''FFS'' (2014–2015)

In 2013, it was announced that the two bands were both performing at the 2013
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. ...
. While searching for a dentist in
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
,
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 ...
, the lead singer of Franz Ferdinand, was found by
Ron Ron is a shortening of the name Ronald. Ron or RON may also refer to: Arts and media * Big Ron (''EastEnders''), a TV character * Ron (''King of Fighters''), a video game character *Ron Douglas, the protagonist in ''Lucky Stiff'' played by Joe ...
and
Russell Mael Russell Craig Mael (born October 5, 1948) is an American singer best known as the lead singer for the band Sparks which he formed in 1971 with his elder brother Ron Mael. Mael is known for his wide vocal range, in particular his far-reaching ...
of Sparks. The Mael brothers invited the band to watch their set at the festival, and later, the two bands agreed that it was time to record an album together. On 9 March 2015, it was announced that Franz Ferdinand and Sparks had formed a supergroup together by the name of FFS. On 1 April, it was announced that the band would be releasing their eponymous debut studio album on 8 June in the UK and 9 June 2015 in the US ''FFS'' was recorded at RAK Studios in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
during a 15-day period in late 2014. It was also produced by Grammy Award-winning music producer John Congleton. ''FFS'' was released to a positive critical and commercial success. In support of the album, FFS appeared on the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
television show '' Later with Jools Holland'' on May 21, 2015 ( season 46, episode 4).


Disbandment

Franz Ferdinand and Sparks returned to working on their separate projects. Sparks released album ''
Hippopotamus The hippopotamus ( ; : hippopotamuses or hippopotami; ''Hippopotamus amphibius''), also called the hippo, common hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extan ...
'' in September 2017, with Franz Ferdinand's ''
Always Ascending ''Always Ascending'' is the fifth studio album by Scottish indie rock band Franz Ferdinand. It was released on 9 February 2018 through the Domino Recording Company. It is the band's first non-collaborative album in over four years, following '' ...
'' following in February 2018. FFS marked the last participation of
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/ ...
alongside members of Franz Ferdinand, before he left the band due to family commitments. Alex Kapranos has publicly stated in multiple occasions that Franz Ferdinand has no intention to resume the band's activities.


Members

*
Russell Mael Russell Craig Mael (born October 5, 1948) is an American singer best known as the lead singer for the band Sparks which he formed in 1971 with his elder brother Ron Mael. Mael is known for his wide vocal range, in particular his far-reaching ...
– lead and
backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...
*
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 ...
– lead and backing vocals, lead and
rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...
, occasional
keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...
*
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/ ...
– rhythm and lead guitar, keyboards, backing and occasional lead vocals *
Ron Mael Ronald David Mael (born August 12, 1945) is an American musician, songwriter, composer and record producer. He is the keyboard player and principal songwriter in the band Sparks which he founded with vocalist, occasional songwriter and younger ...
– keyboards, backing vocals * Bob Hardy – bass, backing vocals *
Paul Thomson Paul may refer to: * Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Ch ...
–
drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
,
percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
, backing vocals


Discography


Studio albums


Singles


Promotional singles


References

{{Authority control Musical groups established in 2014 Domino Recording Company artists Rock music supergroups Scottish rock music groups Art rock musical groups Indie pop groups from Los Angeles Electropop groups Dance-rock musical groups