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Scots Rockers sign-up to anti-racism campaign

The Scottish Government’s ‘One Scotland’ campaign and Bauer Radio Events, today announce the first act appearing at RoAR 2009. Kicking off this year’s Rock Against Racism tour is none other than home-grown 4-piece Franz Ferdinand, who’ll be heading to the Scottish Borders for a special RoAR gig in Selkirk’s Victoria Hall on Wednesday 17th June.

RoAR is a series of live music gigs that aim to celebrate Scotland’s multi-cultural society and help tackle racist attitudes. The free shows, featuring major chart acts, take place across Scotland in both established and more unusual venues. Racist attitudes and behaviour, intentional or not, have a negative impact on Scotland, the people living here, and how we are viewed by the rest of the world. RoAR, as part of the One Scotland campaign, reminds people that racism is wrong and detracts from the kind of Scotland we all want to live in.  This is particularly important in times of economic downturn when we need to remember that diversity is one of Scotland’s strengths.

The first two series of RoAR (in 2006 and 2008) were highly successful and generated a huge amount of interaction and support from the Scottish media and public alike. Some of the biggest names in the UK charts have played RoAR gigs to date including Hard-Fi, The Zutons, Scouting For Girls and Scots ‘locals’ Amy MacDonald and Paolo Nutini,.

And it’s another mighty Scots acts that launches RoAR 2009. It’s been a busy year so far for Franz Ferdinand - Alex Kapranos, Nick McCarthy, Paul Thomson and Bob Hardy.  The band released their third album, ‘Tonight: Franz Ferdinand’, through Domino Records in January of this year.  The album stormed into the charts in 20 countries worldwide, sparking classic singles ‘Ulysses’, ‘No You Girls’ and the forthcoming track ‘Can’t Stop Feeling’, out 6th July. 

With a hectic schedule of festival dates in Europe and Japan over the summer including UK appearances at Glastonbury and T In The Park ahead of their October UK tour, the band continue their quest for world domination and RoAR organisers are delighted that the guys have made time in their diaries to launch the 2009 RoAR tour.

Tickets to RoAR with Franz Ferdinand are FREE and available through Bauer Media competitions next week (Clyde 1, Forth One, MFR, Tay FM, Northsound 1, West FM & Radio Borders) and at www.RockAgainstRacism.info now.

RoAR also gives unsigned bands and solo artists based in Scotland the chance to shine via its renowned ‘Talent Trawl’. Anyone who has aspirations to be the next Franz Ferdinand, Calvin Harris or Amy MacDonald can win the chance to open the show at one of the four RoAR gigs on this year’s tour. For the chance to support Franz Ferdinand and other major acts in 2009, log onto www.rockagainstracism.info now.  The competition is open to any unsigned musicians living in Scotland over the age of 16. The closing date for the Franz Ferdinand support slot is Friday 5th June at 9am. Five finalists will be shortlisted for ahead of each show and the eventual winner will be determined via an online public vote.

There is also the chance for members of the public to ‘have their say’ on the Rock Against Racism website. The Scottish Government and Bauer Radio Events are calling on all Scots to log on NOW and get involved – to stand up and speak out against discrimination, celebrate our many cultures and help make our country a welcoming place that is free from prejudice. 

Siobhan Crampsey of Bauer Radio Events says:

“We’re thrilled and privileged to have Franz Ferdinand open the 2009 Rock Against Racism tour and it’s fantastic that they’re lending their support to the campaign. We had some amazing acts last year such as The Zutons and Hard-Fi but RoAR really takes off when it’s a Scots headliner....the Amy MacDonald show in Troon last year, for example, was a cracker as was Paolo Nutini in Kelso in 2006 . What an opportunity this is also, for a young unsigned Scottish act to open the show for Franz Ferdinand....we’re preparing for a deluge of entries and a really strong shortlist to go to the public vote in a few weeks’ time”


Minister for Housing and Communities, Alex Neil, adds:

"The Rock Against Racism concerts are a fantastic opportunity to use icons and roles models to communicate to a young audience the value of living in a diverse and multicultural Scotland. The campaign continues to send out a strong message that racism is not acceptable in modern Scotland.
 
Previous RoAR campaigns have been a success and I have no doubt we can build on these achievements in the year ahead. In this our year of homecoming RoAR can help in creating a welcoming and friendly atmosphere for those who wish to join us in this inspirational celebration."

A lot of you have been asking about the Kyte chat- they are just having some technical difficulties with it and are fixing it asap.
It will be back up and running soon.

 

I’m back in London to rehearse for the summer festivals. I was in NYC for a few days, where I’m fascinated by the slew of shops, cafes and bars that appear almost daily in Williamsburg and Greenpoint, yet look like they’ve been there since George Washington discovered Brooklyn. One day there is an old bodega or an empty car repair shop, the next day there is a place that seems like it was there for a hundred years, with mirrors distressed by age, ancient flaking gold leaf signs on the windows, flickering lamps, floorboards worn down by ten thousand footsteps, pressed tin on the roof and Ancient Artefacts on every shelf. It’s a phenomenon you find a little of in other cities, but nothing like in new Olde Broolyne Towne. I don’t know if there is a term to describe it, but I call it “Faux Past”. If you find yourself in that plot of land between the Newton Creek, BQE and Broadway and discover a dive bar selling PBR and micro-brewed IPA that wasn’t there a week ago, or a wee boutique selling vintage ephemera that wasn’t there last month, or a dusty old diner selling organic burgers with arugula, blue cheese and walnut salad where the wait staff all have stunning tattoos and Edwardian Levis held up by braces/suspenders (apart from the Latino guys who actually make the food, bring the water and clear the tables) that you could have sworn was an empty funeral home last time you passed… and want to describe it to your pals, it would be something like: “I was in this café/bar/shop on Driggs between 7^th and 8^th. It’s cool, really Faux Past, yeah super old and shit, the chick behind the counter has the name of the place tattooed on her back on the footplate of a massive steam locomotive riding between her shoulders, yeah, a bit like the ‘Rembrandt’s  Radio’ tatt the guy from that place on Franklin has on his arm. Cool. See you at 6. We’ll go check out that band.”

 

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I have enjoyed the Walcott/Padel/Duffy press-coverage of the last few weeks. I don’t think I’ve ever seen poets on the front page before. Usually they’re lucky if they make the obituaries, so it can only be a good thing. I’m a fan of Carol Ann Duffy and while I can wait to read her birthday poems for the Princes Royal or their horsey birds, gawd bless ‘em, I’m glad that more people will enjoy her writing. It is funny, beautiful, moving and, as poetry should be, completely unpretentious. As for Walcott and Padel… well everyone loves a good bitch-fight (it’s why we read the NME) and this one is a beauty. I imagine something similar happened in the early 19^th Century – “Yeeees, he has a way with a stanza, and I give it to you that his mighty sense of meter is only trumped by the magnificent metaphor, but he’s a dirty old sod, that Byron, terrible wandering hands – can’t leave him alone with the missus, never mind young female students… except there aren’t young female students are there? They’re not even going to get the vote for another hundred years are they? Oh well, pass the port will you? What do you think of this one about the daffodils?”

 

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The USA tour was great – thank you to everyone who came out to see us, especially to those of you who travelled for miles and miles, like the girls in Tempe Arizona who were already waiting in the carpark with get well messages for Nick written on their windscreen as the tourbus pulled in with the rising sun. Thanks also to Born Ruffians who were great to watch each night. Oh, yeah and as this seems to be turning into a  thank you list, thanks to all of the stage invaders at the Paradiso in Amsterdam for not nicking anything. You could have got at least 20 Euros for each of the tuners and a hell of a lot more for a Moog or a guitar. We appreciate the appreciation.

 

See you in a field somewhere.

 

Alex

Tour dates with Green Day this summer:

Aug08  Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
Aug09  San Antonio, TX @ AT&T Center
Aug11  St. Louis, MO @ Scottrade Center
Aug12  Kansas City, MO @ Sprint Center
Aug13  Omaha, NE @ Qwest
Aug15  Denver, CO @ Pepsi Center
Aug16  Salt Lake City, UT @ ESA (Energy Sol Arena)
Aug18  San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion
Aug20  San Diego, CA @ Cox Arena
Aug21  Las Vegas, NV @ Mandalay
Aug22  Phoenix, AZ

Tickets:
http://www.greenday.com/splash/splash.php

Info:
http://www.franzferdinand.co.uk/news/index.php

We are playing a few more shows in Europe.

Additional French and German dates announced today:

20-Nov    Germany, Hamburg Sportshalle   
24-Nov    Germany, Berlin, Arena
25-Nov    Germany, Dusseldorf Phililpshalle   
28-Nov    France,  Rennes, Le Liberte
30-Nov    France Bordeaux Medoquine   

More details on the Shows page:
http://www.franzferdinand.co.uk/ff_admin/admin_general/shows.php

Hi there,
We have a new single coming out -Can’t Stop Feeling- through Domino on Monday July 6th 2009.

Available on 7” & download, the single will also feature the band’s version of LCD Soundsystem’s All My Friends.

It is taken from Tonight: Franz Ferdinand, which was released earlier this year.

Some other releases we have coming up:
Blood-  a ‘dub’ version of Tonight: Franz Ferdinand. Out on June 1st. Which has been put together by Dan Cary, who also produced the original album.

We are playing live in the UK soon.
Details here:
OCTOBER
11th Aberdeen Music Hall
12th Dundee Caird Hall
13th Inverness Ironworks
15th Newcastle Academy
16th Sheffield Academy
17th Manchester Apollo
19th Wolverhampton Civic Hall
20th Leeds Academy
23rd London Brixton Academy

Tickets for the shows will be priced at £20 (except London where they will be £21.50) and are available for general sale via www.gigsandtours.com ((for the English dates) & www.seetickets.com (for the Scottish dates).

If not at one of our shows, we hope to see you out at the festivals this summer- See you at Glastonbury, T in the Park, Bennicasim, and Fugi Rock, amongst others.

US fans - hear the Franz Ferdiand iTunes Celebrity Podcast by clicking the banner below!

Hello to all...

We have been in America for a bit, enjoying the sunshine and enthusiastic shows.

For those of you back in the UK  we wanted to pass on some news for you...
As of today there is a link, online till 9am 24th April, for tickets for the UK dates that are all listed below.
The link is here: http://franzferdinandtickets.sandbag.uk.com/Store/DisplayItems.html

Dates and info for the shows are here:
OCTOBER
11th                        Aberdeen                                    Music Hall
12th                        Dundee                                       Caird Hall
13th                        Inverness                                    Ironworks
15th                        Newcastle                                   Academy
16th                        Sheffield                                     Academy
17th                        Manchester                                 Apollo
19th                        Wolverhampton                          Civic Hall
20th                        Leeds                                          Academy
23rd                        London                                       Brixton Academy
 
The tickets will go on general sale at 9am on Friday 24th April from the above link and via www.gigsandtours.com (for the English dates) & www.seetickets.com (for the Scottish dates).
Tickets for the shows will be priced at £20 (except London where they will be £21.50).

Hope to see you there.

FF.
 

Blood will be available for general release on 1st June 2009 through Domino Records, but 500 vinyl copies of the album will be available through selected independent outlets to celebrate Record Store Day on Saturday the 18th of April.  Blood was mixed by Dan Carey, the producer of Tonight: Franz Ferdinand. It will be available (on 1st June) on CD, vinyl and digital formats.

Carey’s CV includes an ‘apprenticeship’ with legendary south London dub specialist The Mad Professor, owner of Ariwa Sounds, one of the UK’s premier reggae labels.

Blood was originally featured as part of the box set & double disc versions of Tonight: Franz Ferdinand, though the new version will include the additional song, Be Afraid, a version of Dream Again.