“This song’s about a girl”. That was a common theme throughout the dual sets of Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab For Cutie on Tuesday night. Most modern rock fans were salivating at the double bill of critical favorites Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab running around the country, and those fans left more than satisfied after their show at the sold out State Theatre.

The two groups brought their fair share of fans to the State, but the Seattle-based Death Cab For Cutie might have had the slight edge, as far as fans went. The show was a mixture of Franz Ferdinand’s dancy Brit-pop, and Death Cab’s moody, self reflecting alt-pop, which has become an encapsulation of the alternative rock scene of the moment.

After an undecipherable set from English band The Cribs, the Scottish Franz Ferdinand started their 70 minute set with This Boy. The band’s second song was the hit single from last fall, Do You Want To, getting the fans dancing early on. The group further excited the fans with tracks like the oddly titled Eleanor, Put Your Boots On, as lead singer Alex Kapranos dove into the song after song from both of their well received albums.

Before the signature Franz tune Take Me Out, Karpanos was obviously bantered back and forth with the crowd, but very few could actually understand him through his thick Scottish accent. Once the song got going, you could hear every word, but listening to the between song chatting was a pain. Franz finished the set with the bouncy This Fire, and satisfied the fans that had been waiting nearly two years to see the band in Detroit.

The mellow sounds of the five piece Death Cab For Cutie are a stark contrast to Franz, but they seemed to share a lot of fans. The band put on a 75 minute set, that gave the impression they were giving it their all, but the crowd seemed to be more subdued than this reviewer thought they would be. I expected every little high schooler in the audience to sing every word to songs like What Sarah Said, and the opening track A Movie Script Ending, but the crowd was very casual and quiet.

Playing in front of a background of white trees, singer Ben Gibbard & the rest of Death Cab performed their usual and dependable blend of chill out rock. The newer tracks, such as singles Soul Meets Body, and the current track Crooked Teeth gained some of the best response of the night. This reviewer had the odd experience of feeling that Death Cab met expectations, but that the crowd let the band down.

Songs about messed up relationships and girls can always get a little wearisome after a while, but Death Cab and Franz Ferdinand proved that they can make them entertaining - even if the crowd is half awake.

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