Franz Ferdinand

They are huge in the UK and have a large 'underground' following in Australia. Touted as being the first great album of 2004, Franz Ferdinand's eponymous debut may be the secret weapon that'll kick-start the British fight against The White Stripes. Though they have a reputation as being bohemian art-obsessed dilettantes, they're at the vanguard of the Art Wave scene, and possess a fierce determination to change the face of modern music - their twin aims: to bring back cerebral rock that makes you want to dance, and to bring frontline music back home.

So what weapons do these four skinny lads engage to galvanise the UK music scene? Unsurprisingly, they roll out the big guns of Britpop past. "Cheating on You" bounces like early Blur; "Come on Home" soars like pre-OK Computer Radiohead; "Michael" flirts with Suede-esque sexual androgyny; and "Matinee" sleazes onto you like Pulp at their most lascivious.