Concert Review
Franz Ferdinand
Electric City
Buffalo, NY
Sunday August 2, 2026
Review/Photos: Joseph Suto
The Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand made it to Buffalo, NY for the first time in 9 years Sunday night. To say the Electric City crowd was wired was an understatement. The show started a little late as the venue maintenance had to deal with a leak that appeared in the roof near some equipment. Once that was resolved the band came out for just their second ever Buffalo show having made their debut in town at Kerfuffle 2017 at Canalside.
The band is currently touring North America on a short 11-date run titled the Greater Glasgow European Cultural Exchange Tour. Try saying that a couple of times real fast. They were initially announced as the opening support for My Chemical Romance at Citifield so they built a short run of dates around that show.
Kicking things off to a rambunctious crowd they got things rolling with “The Dark of the Matinée” from their 2004 self-titled debut. They would delve into the debut five more times before the evening was over. Other songs that stood out were “Jacqueline” and “This Fire” both included during the band’s five song encore.
The band has changed a lot over the years but not since 2021 when drummer Audrey Tait came aboard. Keyboardist/Guitarist Julian Corrie and guitarist Dino Bardot entered in 2017. That leaves bassist Bob Hardy and guitarist/vocalist Alex Kapranos as the only two that were around since the beginning.
The crowd came alive during the two big songs that reached the U.S. Billboard charts in “Take Me Out” and “Do You Want To”. But the band is more than just those two songs. “Walk Away” offered a glimpse into their power pop side while “Audacious” and it’s big sing along chorus had the crowd in Kapranos’ palm.
Franz Ferdinand came out of the gate hard and fast as their debut reached platinum status in the U.S. While they have yet to match that they did have a gold follow-up. Judging by the crowd’s reaction of their electric city show, these guys are still enamored and are very relevant. These guys have stuck to their guns and are still creating some great music as evidenced by their most recent album The Human Fear released in 2025. They may be the biggest cult band from their era at this point and as long as they keep selling tickets they are ok with that tag.
Franz Ferdinand
Sunday Mourners
Set Lists
Franz Ferdinand
The Dark of the Matinée
No You Girls
Night or Day
Walk Away
Evil Eye
Do You Want To
Glimpse of Love
40’
Build It Up
Michael
Love Illumination
Hooked
Take Me Out
Outsiders
Encore
Audacious
Stand on the Horizon
Jacqueline
Bar Lonely
This Fire
Sunday Mourners
Terminal Boredom
Biograph
There’s A Garden In You
Darling
11,000 Volts
When Dreams Come True
Unknown (Unreleased)
Careers In Acting
For more on Franz Ferdinand go to https://franzferdinand.com
For more on Sunday Mourners go to https://sundaymourners.com
