Those free-wheelin’, afro-beatin’, arm-flailin’ types Franz Ferdinand have a new record due out in October. We missed this, probably because we were too busy getting down to the new beat to bother the old, but no doubt Kapranos and co. will return with something to put bullets in our meth-ridden ankle bones.

Anyway – what better way to warn us than to put some sweat in our socks at the following live shows, running up to festival appearances at Connect, Latitude, Electric Picnic and Melt!. DrownedinSound has just found out - thanks, Pitchfork - that these include 'secret' gigs in London and Hull. Those with the rest, below:

June
9 London The Macbeth
21 York Fibbers - 01904 651 250
22 Hull Adelphi - 01482 348 216
24 Bristol Thekla - 0117 929 3301
25 Bath Moles - 01225 404 445
26 Yeovil The Orange Box - 0845 873 8299
28 Cardiff The Point - 02920 460 873
29 Leeds Faversham - 0113 243 3993

New songs – tracks with names like 'Lucid Dreams', 'Ulysses', 'Dream Again', 'Turn It On', 'A Severed Head' and 'Katharine Kiss Me' currently being forged in the depths of Govan with Dan Carey (Hot Chip, Lily Allen) – will be previewed, the press release claims. Tickets cost £15 and will be available from the venue box offices from 9am tomorrow morning, (Fri 6 Jun).