Franz Ferdinand have imposed a "groupie ban" on their aftershow parties because they see taking advantage of their fans as "abuse".
Alex Kapranos has told The Sun: "We are really not into the whole sex thing with groupies. For starters we've all got girlfriends and Paul (the drummer) is married, Nick (guitarist) has just got engaged. We're all quite romantic guys and prefer real love rather than spending some time with someone we've never met before. I've seen a lot of guys in bands around young girls and I think all that stuff can get a bit ugly."...
This bit of twee right-on-ness comes via CMU. What he said was cool, until the last bit. Why does he have to slag off other bands for doing the groupie thing? After all its one of the perks of being on the road, one of very few, truth be told.
Article comments
1 - Ernie Dunn
I am not sure he is slagging off on other bands...it could be taken that way, but I believe he was speaking more of the ugliness of dealing with everything that can come with young women you don't really know...he could have been speaking of Kobe Bryant for all I know. ;)
2 - Mark Edward Manning
Marty, if what Kapranos said was "cool," then why be bothered by his "slagging off" other bands for their use of groupies to fulfill their baser "needs?" It may be a perk of being on the road, true, but that doesn't make it admirable behavior. I really respect Franz Ferninand for this; I only hope they're sincere about it, which, as their career goes forth, only time will tell.
If I were in rock'n'roll, I'd declare a ban on groupies they same way FF has.
3 - JR
Does the ban apply to the road crew also? If so, I foresee a lot of electrical gremlins plaguing their concerts.