After many years of sub-par music saturating mainstream radio airwaves, American pop culture has decided to finally open its narrow doors to overseas acts with a new approach to popular music. Leading this recent surge is a well-dressed quartet from Glasgow, Scotland by the name of Franz Ferdinand. On their self-titled debut, Franz Ferdinand put out a sound that lies somewhere between 1980s rock and dance music.

Armed with dirty guitars and pulsating rhythms, the boys are able to put out a rocking sound that is appropriately contrasted by Alex Kapranos’ poetic and introspective lyrics. Starting off with the melancholic “Jaqueline,” Kapranos writes about the monotony of work and how it’s “always better on holiday.”

As the album progresses, Ferdinand reach their songwriting peak on the single “Take Me Out.” With unorthodox tempo changes and catchy, overdriven guitars, Franz Ferdinand perfect their dancy, art-rock sound and leave the listener singing and tapping to the music long after the song has ended. Although Ferdinand fail to stray from up-tempo dance tunes, they do each song so well and with such originality, that the album closes with no regret or desire for the boys to explore different styles.

Maybe naming the band after the moniker of the archduke whose assassination kicked off World War I is more prophetic than arrogant. Only time will tell, but if nothing else, Franz Ferdinand have made a record that lives up to the hype that has been surrounding them for the past year.