“Take Me Out” de Franz Ferdinand Not only is it one of the most popular songs by the Scottish band, but it was their presentation in 2004 when the world was receiving a lot of indie groups with peculiar sounds. But it was this role that stood out from the rest, almost 20 years after its departure, it is still a jewel.
The guitar riff is considered one of the best of the new millennium, and that change in the melody that first serves as an introduction to start the song… it continues to excite us like the first time we heard it. But something that is also special in Franz Ferdinand’s “Take Me Out” is his story, or rather, his inspiration.
Alex Kapranos, lead singer of Franz Ferdinand, has said that a war movie, specifically a scene between snipers, was the inspiration for “Take Me Out.” Here we tell you what movie he is talking about, what happens in the scene, and how it connects with the song.
battle of stalingrad
Enemy at the Gates was the inspiration for “Take Me Out”, and it is a 2001 film directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud with the protagonist of Jude Law, Joseph Fiennes y Ed Harris. It is set in World War II during the Battle of Stalingrad from August 1942 to February 1943 between the Red Army of the Soviet Union under the command of Stalin and the Nazis under the command of Hitler.
Many historians believe that this brutal confrontation determined the course the war would take in the years to comesince it was the first defeat of importance for the Germans in their attempt to get hold of various resources in the hands of the Soviets. They never made it to Moscow and that was the beginning of the end.
According to some files, the presence of snipers, especially from the Soviet side, was decisive for the victory of the Red Army, because they fought in a destroyed city whose spaces allowed the settlement of snipers to provoke huge casualties among the Nazis.
Enemy at the Gates
The movie Enemy at the Gates it is based on the homonymous novel that follows the true story of Vasily Zaitsev, a hunter from the Urals in Siberia who volunteered to stop the advance of German troops. The thing with him is that he was a very good hunter, and he became the most important sniper among the Soviets in the Battle of Stalingrad.
In Enemy at the Gates we know König, who is mentioned in Zaitsev’s memoirs as the greatest German sniper, and with whom he clashed towards the end of the Battle of Stalingrad. The tape shows different moments of the Soviet sniper and how he ended the lives of several Germans.
There are a couple of scenes in particular that are sensational. The first is when Zaitsev, after a confrontation that gave victory to the Germans, takes a rifle and kills several Nazi officerssaving the life of a Soviet high command (in charge of propaganda, and who takes the hunter as an image to motivate the Red Army).
The other scene, which is related to Franz Ferdinand’s “Take Me Out”, takes place between Záitsev and König, the latter the best sniper in Germany. For hours they remain at their post, waiting for the other to make a mistake, reveal his location, and be able to shoot him. But what does it have to do with “Take Me Out”?
“Take Me Out” de Franz Ferdinand
Alex Kapranos said that one night before going into the studio to record part of Franz Ferdinandhis debut album, saw Enemy at the Gatesand the scene between Ed Harris and Jude Law left him quite impressed. “As soon as one of them moves, the other would know where he is and take him out of the game.“.
For the vocalist, the image of the two snipers waiting for a move, “It felt like a good metaphor for the kind of romantic situations we sometimes find ourselves in.” Like when in a relationship neither side wants to be vulnerable so who would get shot? No one wants to be the first to show what they feel.
This is where the parts of “ come from.”I’m just a shot away from you” y “If I move, this could die. If eyes move, this could die. I want you to take me out“. Franz Ferdinand will be back to perform at the Pal Norte in its 2023 edition. Are you ready to listen to this huge song?
