Pitchfork

Ever wanted to get intimate with four Scotsmen at once? No? If I told you those four Scotsmen were none other than the fashion plates of Franz Ferdinand, might that sweeten the deal? Thought it might.

Mr. Kapranos, the best-named drummer in rock (Paul Thomson), and those other dudes will rock a couple 600-ticket shows at Glasgow's Grand Ole Opry in early June: your only chances to peek under their proverbial kilts until they swing over to the commons for a set at Bonnaroo. One presumes they'll bust out some of the new tracks hinted at on the band's MySpace blog, including "A New Thrill" and "An English Goodbye."

Of course, all that should change with the announcement of a date or two in New York City, which have been hinted at in a recent MySpace post. Trying to wrench two stories out of us, aren't you, boys? Eh, you win.

In other Franz news, Paul Thomson (so close!) is DJing a mess of dates this weekend, including an hour on BBC radio's 6Music show Friday night. He'll also hit up Manchester, England's Joshua Brooks nightclub, and the Dot to Dot Festival May 27, and... well, here, just look below.

Franz Ferdinand:

06-04 Glasgow, Scotland - Grand Ole Opry *
06-05 Glasgow, Scotland - Grand Ole Opry &
06-16 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo

* with Bricolage
& with the Royal We

Paul Thomson, one letter away from perfection:

05-25 Manchester, England - Joshua Brooks (Clique)
05-27 Nottingham, England - Dot to Dot Festival