The Breakdown
If you’re a gig goer who’s ever crossed paths with the fusion blast of TC & The Groove Family or going back further been levelled by Kweku Sackey, aka K.O.G, in his Zong Brigade days, then the chances are you’ve encountered Franz Von, out front in full flow. That sharp delivery, those spikey, incisive rhymes, one big warm, knowing personality, on stage he’s got the spotlight tied down. Surprising then that this stalwart of Sheffield’s afrobeat and sound system community has released only fragments of his own music up until the head-turning ‘People Di Powa’ EP in 2022. Now though comes more than a top up, it’s a full blown Franz Von debut album ‘Take What You Want’ out via the ever-faithful Bridge The Gap.
Starting as if there’s no time to waste the wordsmith gets straight into it with the punchy Obey jabbing strongly, all Wu-tang swing and Kamasi scale. Franz Von is the sooth sayer here, warning against accepting the status quo in an ‘Obey- sleep – consume’ society. “Navigate all the ways through the untruths” and “Keep calm but never docile” are his watch-words, delivered through a ratcheted, rhythmic rap. This is deep bass funk, whipped with a sharp retro snare beat and swooping synths to complete the street level psychedelia.
We Live maintains the pace, a bustling praise song for those who face constant struggle to make ends meet but still carry on resolutely. Here Franz Von sets his rhymes in a bustling nu-jazz frame but with a hyper-powered bassline. There’s room for scat, frisky percussion breaks, warm horn lines (hear the TC/Groove Family vibes) and the celestial swoons from guest vocalist wolf peaches.
The players which Franz Von and producer Chris Mayall have brought together for ‘Take What You Want’ help keep the agenda tight and the sound coherent. The album feels like a whole rather than a compilation of sessions. It probably helped that the core rhythms are generated by TC & The Groove Family engine room, Tim Cook on drums and percussionist Paolo Mazzoni. Similarly other musicians, Phillippe Clegg and Harry Poxon all come from the close-knit Sheffield fusion/funk /soul scene and seem to bring an intuitive understanding of the Von vibe.
Other voices have been chosen with care and the intention to add harmonic contrast to Franz Von’s rugged and rasping raps. On Hurt, old compadre from the ‘People Di Powa‘ EP, Nikisha In The Woods adds her silky tones to the song’s sultry skanking passages while Franz rattles through the more frantic drum n bass sections. The Skatalites succulent horns meets Roni Size-like velocity sounds an unlikely combo on paper but here the blend is super fine. The moody post-rave Rumtown features Babbit’s gothic coos and smooth soul tones, gliding over the acid house synth turbulence and Franz Von’s barbed, ironic shout out “I wanna rave all-day”. There’s even a shift from rapped poetics to an almost sung lilt when he’s joined by Lucy Revis warm R n B phrases for the Nubiyan Twist-ish nu-jazz funk of Make It Happen.
At the centre of all these vibrant sonics you have Franz Von’s deep cut rhymes, thoughtful messaging and heart-felt integrity. On the motivational Go My Way he digs down into his own experiences as a community activist and in youth work with a genuine appeal to anyone listening “to find their own path, despite how challenging it might be”. Franz Von’s voice empowers here through his honest sharing as he admits “Feel I had the world on my back/ heading for my destination as I circle the map…” The song’s trap beat stomp, crowd sung hook, distorted dub and syllable-focused snare smack adds power to this uplifting patter. The flighty nu-jazz of Nuff Pressure sees Von’s urgent reflections bounce off each other with a pinball rapidity, almost as if he’s cross examining his commitment. It’s a cut which resonates with a similar complex sensitivity to Ghostpoet.
But it’s on tracks which steer towards the more risk-taking end of fusion that Franz Von really lays down his most distinctive marker. Nah Beg highlights that alchemy at boiling point, a hard-nosed new sound forging afrobeat, cosmic jazz and thrilling bateria breaks. Featuring Quabena Cepha, a Ghanaian highlife drill artist, the song sweeps between spiralling flute breaks, progish organ swirls and the Mazonni/Cook rhythmic fizz while the Franz Von/ Cepha combination seamlessly merge styles. Such electric eclecticism stretches further on I Praise where atmospheric shades of Ethio-funk and Bhangra lock together for a massive, proto skank as pulsating as those much-missed Dub Colossus times. Franz Von calls out righteous and rootsy before the tune reaches a peak leaving just street songs and pure beats playing.
Listening through ‘Take What You Want’ you tend to lose count of such elevating highs. It’s an album packed with ideas and dynamism which goes for full effect and rarely disappoints. As the venerable Pulp revive this summer, this feels like the sound of Sheffield in forward motion.
Get your copy of ‘Take What You Want’ by Franz Von from Bridge The Gap HERE
No Comment