Pitchfork

Now then: Break out the 'shrooms, boys and girls! It's time to go on a little trip with Franz Ferdinand! Like the Beatles and Pink Floyd before them, Alex Kapranos & Co. encourage you to play their records backwards (which, incidentally, may result in scratches, which could result in you having to purchase a new copy of the album). Kapranos recently told MTV all about the subliminal messages they're packing into their new record, saying, "There's one on the first record, at the beginning of the second verse in 'Michael'. And we're going to do that on this album, too."

Having already performed some of their new material during a recent tour of Russia (including songs titled "I'm Your Villain", "Evil and a Heathen" and "Robert Anderson Is Christ"), the band have returned to New York to mix'n'master the sophomore album, which is slated for release sometime in the fall. They're currently working on roughly 20 cuts for the album, which is being laid to tape by up-and-coming producer Rich Costey. "We're always writing songs," Kapranos told MTV. "It's a continuous and nebulous process. If we all don't get to sit around and write with each other, we tend to get very upset."

The band plan on completing the mixing process within the next two weeks, with their sights on the end of September as a potential release date. Other songs in the works include "This Boy", "You Can Have It So Much Better", "Your Diary", "Radio", "Wee Andy", and "What You Meant".

As for those subliminal messages, Kapranos insists they aren't satanic: "There was that trend in the 70s and 80s of back-masking, where you'd put the most terrible satanic messages on songs, and we wanted to do the exact opposite, put the most positive thing we could think of as a backwards message." Indeed, the message buried in "Michael" is, "Call your mother, she's worried about you." GONK.

In related news, a post on the band's official site is inviting fans to help the band out with their upcoming DVD project. Yes, Franz Ferdinand want you to send them JPEG and MPEG files of you and your pals at Franz shows, as well as your own personal MP3 and MPEG messages to the band. Hurry, you only have until June 20 to compose your odes. Mine goes like this: "Franzy, oh Franzy/ They never seen a man dance/ Like the Franzy dance/ SEXUAL CHOCOLATE". See, there's a reason why I'm just writing about music and not out making it. Visit their site for more details.

Finally, the lads have announced a late-August series of shows in Edinburgh. On August 30 and 31, they'll play outside Edinburgh Castle, as part of the T on the Fringe event. A band we like very much called the Arcade Fire will open on the final day. Here are their remaining summer dates:

06-25 Herzogenrath, Germany - Sportanlage Schulzentrum
07-17 Aix-les-bains, France - L'Esplanade du Lac
07-20 Nimes, France - Place des Arenes
07-21 Nyon, Switzerland - L'Asse
07-26 Athens, Greece - Lycabettus Theatre
08-08 Vantaa, Finland - Korsossa
08-09 San Sebastian, Spain - Anoeta Stadium
08-10 Madrid, Spain - Aqualung
08-11 Madrid, Spain - Vicente Calderon Stadium
08-13 Oslo, Norway - Middelalderparken
08-19 Biddinghuizen, Holland - Six Flags Holland
08-20 Staffordshire, England - Weston Park
08-21 Chelmsford, England - Hylands Park
08-23 Belfast, Northern Ireland - Botanic Gardens
08-24 Dublin, Ireland - Lansdowne Road
08-26 Saint-Cloud, France - Domaine National de St. Cloud
08-30/31 Edinburgh, Scotland - Princes Street Gardens
09-02 Reykjavik, Iceland - Kaplariki Sports Hall
09-23-25 Austin, Texas - Zilker Park (Austin City Limits)

* Pitchfork Review: Franz Ferdinand: Franz Ferdinand
* Pitchfork News: Franz Ferdinand Continue Work on Second Album