Franz Ferdinand

Franz Ferdinand, Teenage Dads, and Delivery live at ICF Warehouse, Perth | 26 November 2025

Franz Ferdinand

Franz Ferdinand strutted onto the Warehouse Stage at The Ice Cream Factory last Wednesday night. For the Perth leg of their six-studio album tour The Human Fear. Playing alongside homegrown Australian talent Delivery and Teenage Dads. There was something for everyone, from the youthful TikTok indie rockers to the veteran Big Day Out stalwarts (of which there were many!).

It was a night that served out a lot of nostalgia from that time period. To which most punters over 35+ who you will meet on the gig-circuit dub ‘the glory days’. With the hairlines receding, and grey hairs beginning to sprout, this was like stepping into the fountain of youth for some.

Delivery

Hailing from Melbourne, Victoria. Delivery played out the first set, providing punters with a heavy dose of jangly indie rock riffs and rhythms. Energizing the early arrivals with their youthful energy. The band expressed how stoked they were to play in Perth.

Having only played a gig at Mojos bar in Fremantle a few weeks before, they made the crowd feel exceptionally welcome. With the large cavernous space of the Warehouse Stage and its marquee encapsulated the small throng of punters below. It sparked the intimacy of a smaller, no frills local rock gig. Easing the punters into an enjoyable night ahead.

Teenage Dads

Teenage Dads only channelled the vivacious spirit further. With a sound peppered with cheeky synths, and delightfully crunchy rock guitars. Their set felt like the 8-bit soundtrack of an arcade game at times. There were also soundbites played between songs that were reminiscent of announcements of cabin crew on a long-haul flight.

With the punters becoming keener and keener to get closer to stage and dance about, it wasn’t that far from the real thing. It was surprising cabin crew members didn’t suddenly come out and start throwing peanuts at everyone. The band’s instrumental energy was thrown into full gear following a hypnotic cover of ‘Video Killed The Radio Start’ by The Buggles. Moving away from a sound that was reminiscent of a standard rock band and into a vibe that was noticeably groovier. It was easy to become lost into their upbeat tempos (until a punters backpack wiggling in front of your face brought you back down to earth).

ICF Warehouse

Franz Ferdinand emerged onto the Warehouse Stage to universal fanfare from punters. With the venue now at full capacity, and blistering with heat from the fervent crowd. There was an endearing charisma coming from the band and frontman Alex Kapranos. Aptly consolidating the band’s energy and channelling it into the crowd. It was easy to spot the die-hard fans who were bouncing off their classic sound.

Midway through their set, Franz Ferdinand made reference to playing at the Big Day Out in 2005. Citing fond memories of playing at the festival and final days of that tour. Karanos drew a contrast to how performances were done back then, to how gigs were now. Showing a distaste for mobile phones. He asked the crowd to put their phones away and go ‘absolutely fucking mental’ in a delightfully Scottish delivery. Unsurprisingly, the punters responded by going absolutely nuts.

A highlight of course being with the band teasing the crowd with ‘Take Me Out’. It felt like almost a rite of passage experiencing that iconic guitar riff, and the sudden tempo change in the flesh with a crowd going gangbusters around you. Presenting the iconic track via the delivery of a chorus in loud, proud form.

Franz Ferdinand finished up with an encore of four songs. It was hard to say if that constituted an encore, but no one was necessarily complaining. Karanos ensured punters didn’t lose sight of the end of their performance by cheekily counting down how many songs they had left from four songs to one.

Considering the band hadn’t played in Perth for 11 years, the large encore was probably compensation for leaving Perth Franz Ferdinand fans starved of live shows for so long. No doubt a four-song encore should cover it.

The night was really a love letter to 2000s indie rock, whilst also nurturing younger talented bands coming through. It was an excellent night for both young and old fans to enjoy their music. With Franz Ferdinand giving Perth punters what they had been desperately waiting 11 years for, a chance to rock and have Franz Ferdinand ‘Take Them Out’.

Photography by Chris Symes