Sound Bites: Eating on Tour with Franz Ferdinand by Alex Kapranos

The lead singer of the acclaimed, platinum-selling group Franz Ferdinand takes readers on a rock-and-roll culinary adventure around the world. The band has millions of fans around the globe, and their frequent tours bring its members not only to a wide variety of places but also face to face with a wide range of food. Here, lead singer Alex Kapranos collects his humorous and insightful reflections — compiled partly from his column in the Guardian (London) — on his many international gastronomic encounters, both savory and not so savory. From the charms of a donut shop in a Polish-speaking part of Brooklyn to a decidedly less charming pair of bull’s testicles in Buenos Aires to the seductive, almost-vegetarian allure of a heavenly Singaporean buffet, Kapranos always gets the mouthwatering details just right while delivering an entertaining look at rock-and-roll life on the road.

Here's one of my favorite passages (fr: pg. 10):

"Over the last couple of years, this group has taken me around the world two and a half times. Sometimes I eat appallingly. Sometimes I eat phenomenally well. I never eat predictably. I've chipped my molars on tiny pearls from mussels in Brussels. Three days ago, I ate a Sumo wrestler's hotpot in Shibuya, then walked to my hotel through a plague of rats. I've been poisoned by mole from a Mexico City convent. I witnessed the failed taming of the Pacific Oyster in Portland. I realized that the finest fast food in the world is on the streets of Athens. I munched a slice of fishbrain bread from Finland (tastier than you'd imagine, but not as interesting). I've discovered that sea urchin is the only food I've ever put in my mouth and physically not been able to swallow, while sitting in the restaurant that was the setting for the Samurai sword slaughter in Kill Bill. I've walked Cake Lover's Lane in Melbourne and dunked Polish donuts and Key Lime pie in Brooklyn. I chewed alligator sausage in New Orleans, unable to leave the restaurant until the police had finished pouring tear gas into the apartment two floors above us to diffuse a hostage situation. I drank beetroot juice until my sweat ran red. I learned how to toast from Georgians in Moscow and ate blinis in the St. Petersburg dining room that was formerly the offices of the KGB. Yes, food is still an adventure."

At just 132 pages this is perfect light reading, just don't read this before bed otherwise you might be tempted to raid the fridge. I should also mention the book also features illustrations by Andrew Knowles. Order Sound Bites: Eating on Tour with Franz Ferdinand by Alex Kapranos here.