Lucid Dreams

Album: Tonight: Franz Ferdinand (2009)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Frontman Alex Kapranos told Rolling Stone that this song started off sounding like a classic Franz Ferdinand tune, but "now it's probably the most far out of all the songs."
  • An earlier version was released as a digital only single through iTunes in August 2008, the band's first single release since "Eleanor Put Your Boots On" in July 2006.
  • This was included on the in-game soundtrack to the video game Madden 09.
  • Guitarist Nick McCarthy told The Sun January 23, 2009 that the electronic section at the end of this song was the last thing the band recorded for the Tonight: Franz Ferdinand album. He added: "All the electronic stuff was completely improvised. It was one long take. We did an hour of it and then had to cut it down. It was really lots of fun to do."
  • Ferdinand Kapranos (from self-titled magazine): "I love the state you're in when you're half awake and half asleep and you have some vague control of your dreams. It's better than any film you could go to or any music. It's so vivid. So that's the theme of the song, and it's quite different from anything we've done before. That's actually the shortest version. The section at the end was originally, like, 45 minutes long, and even though it's electronic, we didn't use the processing of the computer. There's a certain sound of modern records that sounds incredibly two-dimensional when everything's kept in the computer."
  • The Tonight: Franz Ferdinand album describes a raucous night on the town. Kapranos explained to self-titled magazine that this song describes the "coming back down and dreaming and drifting off" part of the night, after "psyching yourself up and going wild."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Gary Brooker of Procol Harum

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Don Felder

Don FelderSongwriter Interviews

Don breaks down "Hotel California" and other songs he wrote as a member of the Eagles. Now we know where the "warm smell of colitas" came from.

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"They're Playing My Song

A song he wrote and recorded from "sheer spiritual inspiration," Allen's didn't think "Southern Nights" had hit potential until Glen Campbell took it to #1 two years later.

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)Songwriter Interviews

Before "Rap" was a form of music, it was something guys did to pick up girls in nightclubs. Donnie talks about "The Rapper" and reveals the identity of Leah.

Al Kooper

Al KooperSongwriter Interviews

Kooper produced Lynyrd Skynyrd, played with Dylan and the Stones, and formed BS&T.

Emilio Castillo from Tower of Power

Emilio Castillo from Tower of PowerSongwriter Interviews

Emilio talks about what it's like to write and perform with the Tower of Power horns, and why every struggling band should have a friend like Huey Lewis.