The band's sound started off more in the Fugazi-esque D.C. post-hardcore vein, which you can hear on 1996's Go Kid Go, released on defunct Canadian label Workshop Records. The album featured nine new songs as well as all of the band's early 7-inch and compilation appearances, making it a primer for any fans coming on-board in the mid-'90s.
But while the band were already showing promise, it was 1997's Building In A And E where the band really developed their own sound. Released by Chicago's File 13 Records, the seven-song EP (the first to feature Mills on bass) was produced by Hopeton "Scientist" Brown, the man who practically invented dub music. What the band came up with on that release was groundbreaking for the time, turning Franklin into sort of a post-hardcore version of Bad Brains - a band who could both be aggressive one minute and then lose themselves in the rhythm the next.
As the band's buzz was building, they signed to Tree Records, then a white-hot Chicago label which had released early work from Pinback, Urban Legends (pre-the Thermals) and others, and was responsible for the absolutely genius Post Marked Stamps 7-inch series, which featured Braid, the Get Up Kids, Rainer Maria, Tim Kinsella and many more. Franklin's first release on the label was the Major Taylor 7-inch, the A-side of which was the title track and also landed its way on a Tree/Southern/Polyvinyl Records sampler in early 1998.
But all of that was a precursor to the group's swan song, 1999's self-titled effort. The band had moved on from post-hardcore and fully embraced dub, but alternated between bass-heavy jams and energetic, lo-fi indie rock. The record opens with a wailing siren before "They Attack" slams itself into gear with thumping drums and oozing bass; a few minutes later, the band deliver "Inventor Of Loud," a positively brilliant piece of brainy indie rock that still sounds better than virtually anyone slogging it up on Pitchfork Music Festival's side stages.
After the band broke up in the early 2000s, Darden went onto found Jai-Alai Savant, who released an EP and LP before slipping into hibernation. He also DJs in Chicago frequently, going under the moniker Major Taylor. His other claim to fame? Atom And His Package wrote a song about him, called "Happy Birthday Ralph." (Sample lyric: "Happy birthday, Ralph/I love you/Even though you are fucking disgusting.") Sokel started up experimental indie-pop duo AM/FM in the wake of Franklin's dissolution; they are now defunct, as well.
2) Franklin is a Drum & Bass DJ/Producer from Bournemouth, United Kingdom.
[untitled]
Franklin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Rosa cchiù d"e rrose
Si' pe mme
Rigneme ancora 'e vase
Sta vocca tene sete 'e te
Tu quanno scinne è comme si purtasse luce
Mmiezo 'a via
Areto a te se chiude 'a porta d"a malincunia
E' 'a quanno te aggio vista ca me songo
'Nnammurato 'e te
Tu senza 'na parola hai ditto ca vulive a mme
Comme quanno vene 'a staggione e 'o friddo se nne va
'O ffuoco dint"o core mio s'era appicciato ggià
Quanno 'o vveco nun 'o ccredo
Nun me pare 'o vero
Ca 'a cchiù bbella d"e quartieri
Fa ammore cu' mme
E si st'ammore è sincero
Famme nu piacere
Dicencello 'o munno sano ca vuo' sulo a mme
Diceno 'e cumpagne mieje ca nun te ne 'mporta
Niente 'e me
Ca è sulo nu dispietto a chi nun te ha vuluto cchiù
Diceno ca i' so' speciale e nun me pozzo ietta' accussì
Appriesso a una comme te ca me po' fa' suffri'
Cchiù 'e tutte cose chello ca me piace 'e te
è 'a carnalità
Ca si na cosa nun 'a vuò fa' tu dice 'a verità
Rimmane comme si' pecchè hai cagnato chesta vita mia
Cu' tte trase 'alleria e caccia fore 'appucundria
Franklin's song [untitled] opens with the lyrics "Perla cchiù d"e pperle, Rosa cchiù d"e rrose, Si' pe mme". These lines loosely translate to "You are to me the pearl of pearls, the rose of roses". The singer speaks to his beloved, longing for her affection, and describes her as the most radiant and beautiful person in the world. He continues to express how much he needs her, how her mouth is thirsty for him, and how her presence brings light to his life as she approaches him in the middle of the street, and together, they close the door of melancholy.
As the song progresses, the singer reminisces about the time they first met, and how despite not saying a word, he fell in love with her. He narrates how the fire in his heart ignited at that moment and never ceased, and how he wishes to tell the world that she belongs to him. His friends say that he doesn't care about anything else, and that he's only saying this out of spite of those who dismissed him. He acknowledges the carnality between them, and as he gets lost in thoughts, he redirects to asking her to never leave him.
Line by Line Meaning
Perla cchiù d"e pperle
You shine brighter than any precious gem.
Rosa cchiù d"e rrose
You are more beautiful than any rose.
Si' pe mme
You are mine.
Rigneme ancora 'e vase
Please fill my cup once more with your love.
Sta vocca tene sete 'e te
I long to taste your lips and quench my thirst for you.
Tu quanno scinne è comme si purtasse luce
When you descend, it's as if you bring light with you.
Mmiezo 'a via
Amidst the journey.
Areto a te se chiude 'a porta d"a malincunia
I am close to you and the door of sadness is closed.
E' 'a quanno te aggio vista ca me songo
Since I first saw you, I've been in love.
'Nnammurato 'e te
I am in love with you.
Tu senza 'na parola hai ditto ca vulive a mme
Without a word, you told me you wanted me.
Comme quanno vene 'a staggione e 'o friddo se nne va
Like when the cold of winter fades away and spring comes.
'O ffuoco dint"o core mio s'era appicciato ggià
The fire in my heart has already been ignited.
Quanno 'o vveco nun 'o ccredo
When I see it, I can hardly believe it.
Nun me pare 'o vero
It doesn't seem real to me.
Ca 'a cchiù bbella d"e quartieri
That the most beautiful in the neighborhood.
Fa ammore cu' mme
Is in love with me.
E si st'ammore è sincero
And if this love is true.
Famme nu piacere
Please me.
Dicencello 'o munno sano ca vuo' sulo a mme
Tell the whole world that you only want me.
Diceno 'e cumpagne mieje ca nun te ne 'mporta
My friends say that you don't care.
Niente 'e me
About me.
Ca è sulo nu dispietto a chi nun te ha vuluto cchiù
That it's just a way to spite those who no longer want you.
Diceno ca i' so' speciale e nun me pozzo ietta' accussì
They say that I'm special and shouldn't be treated like this.
Appriesso a una comme te ca me po' fa' suffri'
Being with someone like you can make me suffer.
Cchiù 'e tutte cose chello ca me piace 'e te
More than anything, what I like about you.
è 'a carnalità
Is your sensuality.
Ca si na cosa nun 'a vuò fa'
It's something I can't resist.
Tu dice 'a verità
You are telling the truth.
Rimmane comme si' pecchè hai cagnato chesta vita mia
You stay with me because you've captured my life.
Cu' tte trase 'alleria e caccia fore 'appucundria
With you, I leave behind the darkness and chase away the worries.
Contributed by Tristan R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.