Oxford quintet Foals‘ much anticipated second album Total Life Forever will be released on May 10th, preceded on May 3rd by debut single ‘This Orient’, and to celebrate they’re gonna be hitting the road for a sizeable tour in late April and early May.

Tickets for all dates go on sale on Friday (12th March 2010) at 9am.

Thursday 29th April 2010 – Liverpool Kazimier
Friday 30th April 2010 – Newcastle University
Sunday 2nd May 2010 – Glasgow ABC
Monday 3rd May 2010 – Leeds Met University
Tuesday 4th May 2010 – Manchester Ritz
Thursday 6th May 2010 – Cambridge Junction
Friday 7th May 2010 – Nottingham Trent University
Saturday 8th May 2010 – Bristol Anson Rooms
Monday 10th May 2010 – London Electric Ballroom
Wednesday 12th May 2010 – Oxford O2 Academy
Friday 14th May 2010 – Dublin Abassador

North Wales band the Joy Formidable will be logging many miles travelled as they trek across the UK in March and April on tour. Note that four dates in Scotland originally slated for the start of the tour have been rescheduled for early April. Catch the band on the dates below.

Their new single ‘Popinjay’ is now available as a digital download, with a limited run of 500 7″ vinyl singles planned for 5 April.

Sunday 14th March 2010 – Manchester, Ruby Lounge
Monday 15th March 2010 – Liverpool, Korova
Tuesday 16th March 2010 – Nottingham, Bodega
Wednesday 17th March 2010 – Leeds, Cockpit
Friday 19th March 2010 – Cambridge, Portland
Saturday 20th March 2010 – Birmingham, O2 Academy 2
Sunday 21st March 2010 – Oxford, O2 Academy 2
Monday 22nd March 2010 – Brighton, Audio
Wednesday 24th March 2010 – London, Electric Ballroom
Thursday 25th March 2010 – Southampton, Joiners
Friday 26th March 2010 – Bristol, Start the Bus
Saturday 27th March 2010 – Cardiff, Barfly
Monday 29th March 2010 – Northampton, Roadmenders
Tuesday 30th March 2010 – Sheffield, O2 Academy 2
Wednesday 31st March 2010 – Newcastle, O2 Academy 2
Thursday 1st April 2010 – Wrexham, Central Station
Saturday 3rd April 2010 – Glasgow, King Tuts
Sunday 4th April 2010 – Inverness, Madhatters
Monday 5th April 2010 – Aberdeen, Snafu
Tuesday 6th April 2010 - Dundee, Fat Sams

MP3: The Joy Formidable – The Greatest Light is the Greatest Shade
MP3: The Joy Formidable – Cradle
MP3: The Joy Formidable – Austere
MP3: The Joy Formidable – While the Flies

Lightspeed Champion (aka Dev Hynes) will tour the UK in May in support of his new album ‘Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You’ (released in the UK on 15 February). Tickets will go on sale on Tuesday 23 February at 9am from Gigs and Tours and all other reputable ticket sellers.

Catch Lightspeed Champion at:

Saturday 1st May 2010 – Leeds Live at Leeds at Stylus
Monday 3rd May 2010 – Nottingham Bodega
Wednesday 5th May 2010 – Glasgow King Tuts
Thursday 6th May 2010 – Manchester Deaf Institute
Friday 7th May 2010 – Newcastle Cluny
Sunday 9th May 2010 – Birmingham O2 Academy 3
Monday 10th May 2010 – London Heaven
Tuesday 11th May 2010 – Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms
Thursday 13th May 2010 – Norwich Arts Centre
Friday 14th May 2010 – Bristol Academy 2
Saturday 15th May 2010 – Cambridge Haymakers

Jess introduced Chapel Club the other week, and now the fast rising stars are off on a sizeable UK tour throughout April.

Catch them at:

Wednesday 7th April 2010 – Portsmouth Cellars
Thursday 8th April 2010 – Guildford Boileroom
Friday 9th April 2010 – Oxford Jericho Tavern
Saturday 10th April 2010 – Bath Moles
Monday 12th April 2010 – Cardiff Barfly
Tuesday 13th April 2010 – Wolverhampton Slade Rooms
Thursday 15th April 2010 – Sheffield Bungalow & Bears
Friday 16th April 2010 – Liverpool Korova
Saturday 17th April 2010 – Leeds A Nation Of Shopkeepers
Monday 19th April 2010 – York Stereo
Tuesday 20th April 2010 – Newcastle The Other Room
Wednesday 21st April 2010 – Edinburgh Cabaret Voltaire
Saturday 24th April 2010 – Southampton Joiners
Sunday 25th April 2010 – Cambridge Haymakers
Wednesday 27th April 2010 – London Village Underground

Delphic are cementing their name as one of 2010’s brightest stars by playing another tour, this time throughout the middle of March.

Catch them at:

Thursday 4th March 2010 – Middlesbrough Teeside University
Saturday 6th March 2010 – Dublin – Propaganda @ The Academy
Sunday 7th March 2010 – Stoke – Sugarmill
Tuesday 9th March 2010 – Northampton – Roadmender
Wednesday 10th March 2010 – Wigan – Club Nirvana
Thursday 11th March 2010 – Edinburgh – Studio 24
Friday 12th March 2010 – Newcastle – Digital
Sunday 14th March 2010 – Birmingham – Academy
Monday 15th March 2010 – London – Heaven
Tuesday 16th March 2010 – Cambridge – Junction
Wednesday 17th March 2010 – Manchester – Sankeys
Friday 19th March 2010 – Sheffield – Leadmill
Saturday 20th March 2010 – Southampton – University

“Girl with guitar” Tiffany Page, who you may have caught in Jess’s Bands to Watch post last week, is hitting the road over the next few months on an extensive UK tour. She will be doing a run of gigs in smaller venues before a stint supporting the Noisettes throughout February and March. Don’t miss your chance to see the songstress with “the sassy swagger of Chrissie Hynde, Shirley Manson’s vampish purr and the hellion roar of Courtney Love” before she makes it big!

Tuesday 19th January 2010 – London, The Garage
Thursday 21st January 2010 - Guildford, Boileroom
Saturday 23rd January 2010 – Bath, Moles
Monday 25th January 2010 - Coventry, Kasbah
Tuesday 26th January 2010 - London, The Garage
Thursday 28th January 2010 - Cambridge, Portland Arms
Friday 29th January 2010 - Hampshire, West End Centre
Sunday 31st January 2010 - Birmingham, Sound Bar
Wednesday 3rd February 2010 - London, Hard Rock Cafe (supporting Pixie Lott)
Wednesday 10th February 2010 - London, The Garage (HMV show with The Cheek)
Tuesday 16th February 2010 - London, The Garage
Thursday 18th February 2010 - Aberdeen, Music Hall (supporting the Noisettes)
Friday 19th February 2010 - Edinburgh, Picture House (supporting the Noisettes)
Saturday 20th February 2010 - Sheffield, Academy (supporting the Noisettes)
Monday 22nd February 2010 - Nottingham, Rock City (supporting the Noisettes)
Tuesday 23rd February 2010 - Cambridge, Corn Exchange (supporting the Noisettes)
Wednesday 24th February 2010 - Bournemouth, Opera House (supporting the Noisettes)
Friday 26th February 2010 - Brighton, Dome (supporting the Noisettes)
Saturday 27th February 2010 - London, Roundhouse (supporting the Noisettes)
Sunday 28th February 2010 - London, Roundhouse (supporting the Noisettes)
Tuesday 2nd March 2010 - Manchester, Academy (supporting the Noisettes)
Wednesday 3rd March 2010 - Newcastle, Academy (supporting the Noisettes)
Thursday 4th March 2010 - Liverpool, Academy (supporting the Noisettes)
Friday 5th March 2010 - Bristol, Academy (supporting the Noisettes)

Liverpudlians Hot Club De Paris will be embarking on a tour in February. The string of dates finishes with a hometown gig at Liverpool’s Korova. This tour will be in support of a new six-track EP, ‘With Days Like This As Cheap As Chewing Gum, Why Would Anyone Want To Work?’, to be released digitally by Moshi Moshi Records on 8 February, with a limited edition 10-inch vinyl version set to follow on February 22. Moshi Moshi have confirmed that a second EP, ‘The Rise And Inevitable Fall Of The High School Suicide Cluster Band’, will follow sometime later this year. I was taken by these boys as they supported Dirty Pretty Things at Shepherds Bush in 2006, so I’m bummed I’ll be missing them on this outing.

Monday 8th February 2010 – Birmingham Rainbow
Tuesday 9th February 2010 – London Lexington
Wednesday 10th February 2010 – Brighton Freebutt
Thursday 11th February 2010 – Cambridge Portland Arms
Friday 12th February 2010 - Nottingham Bodega
Saturday 13th February 2010 – Leeds Cockpit
Monday 15th February 2010 – Manchester Deaf Institute
Tuesday 16th February 2010 – York City Street Basement
Wednesday 17th February 2010 – Newcastle Cluny
Thursday 18th February 2010 – Edinburgh Cabaret Voltaire
Friday 19th February 2010 – Dundee Doghouse
Saturday 20th February 2010 – Middlesborough Uncle Alberts
Monday 22nd February 2010 – Bristol Louisiana
Tuesday 23rd February 2010 – Cardiff Clwb Ifor Bach
Wednesday 24th February 2010 – Oxford Jericho
Thursday 25th February 2010 – Winchester Railway
Friday 26th February 2010 – Liverpool Korova

You can preorder Hot Club De Paris’s ‘With Days Like This As Cheap As Chewing Gum, Why Would Anyone Want To Work?’ EP at Moshi Moshi Records’s Web site.

Northern Irish alternative band Ash are set to begin another tour of the UK in April. Last autumn they played a 26-date UK tour to go along with their ‘A-Z’ themed set of 26 singles.

Tickets are available for some shows already, but tickets to most of these dates go on sale at 9 AM today.

Monday 19th April 2010 – Southampton University
Tuesday 20th April 2010 – Cambridge Junction
Wednesday 21st April 2010 - Norwich Waterfront
Friday 23rd April 2010 – Birmingham Irish Centre
Saturday 24th April 2010 – Leeds Metropolitan
Sunday 25th April 2010 – Newcastle O2 Academy
Tuesday 27th April 2010 – Glasgow O2 ABC
Wednesday 28th April 2010 – Manchester Academy 2
Friday 30th April 2010 – Bristol O2 Academy
Saturday 1st May 2010 – Brighton Concorde
Sunday 2nd May 2010 – Oxford O2 Academy
Tuesday 4th May 2010 – London Electric Ballroom

In the meantime to whet your appetite, you can catch the futuristic video for their ‘H’ single, ‘Space Shot’, out in the UK on 18 January below.

Carved out of the remains of Obviously 5 Believers (who released the single ‘The I’ll Be Leaving You’), 2009 proved a fruitful year for Niteflights. And with the release of their new EP that is already being well received, it seems 2010 could be better still. Performing blues rooted in folk, their debut EP titled ‘The Delightful Fall of Niteflights’ is out now. To support the release the band are to tour (dates below), and in-between it all is a support slot for Pete Doherty’s return to the Rhythm Factory later this month.

It’s been a while since a good hard working band have created anything even vaguely resembling ‘alternative’ (to what has become mainstream jangly-indie), so the arrival of this London five-piece is more than  welcome. They’re everything a new band should be, packed with hunger, dedication and best of all, tunes to make you merry. Get used to them as now you’re bound to hear more from them over the next 12 months!

Saturday 9th January 2010 – Edinburgh Ark
Sunday 10th January 2010 – Glasgow Captain’s Rest
Tuesday 12th January 2010 – Lancaster Yorkshire House
Wednesday 13th January 2010 – Manchester Dry Bar
Thursday 14th January 2010 – Bath Moles Club
Saturday 16th January 2010 – Cambridge Cornerhouse (free show)
Sunday 17th January 2010 – London Rhythm Factory (with Peter Doherty)
Wednesday 20th January 2010 – London 93 Feet East

The wonderful Joy Formidable are cementing their reputation for being one of the hardest working bands by spending just about all of March going around the UK.

Tickets are on sale now for all dates, priced at £7 except for London which is £9 a ticket.

Tuesday 9th March 2010 – Glasgow, King Tuts
Wednesday 10th March 2010 – Aberdeen, Snafu
Thursday 11th March 2010 – Inverness, Madhatters
Friday 12th March 2010 – Dundee, Fat Sams
Sunday 14th March 2010 – Manchester, Ruby Lounge
Monday 15th March 2010 – Liverpool, Korova
Tuesday 16th March 2010 – Nottingham, Bodega
Wednesday 17th March 2010 – Leeds, Cockpit
Friday 19th March 2010 – Cambridge, Portland
Saturday 20th March 2010 – Birmingham, O2 Academy 2
Sunday 21st March 2010 – Oxford, O2 Academy 2
Monday 22nd March 2010 – Brighton, Audio
Wednesday 24th March 2010 – London, Electric Ballroom
Thursday 25th March 2010 – Southampton, Joiners
Friday 26th March 2010 – Bristol, Start the Bus
Saturday 27th March 2010 – Cardiff, Barfly
Monday 29th March 2010 – Northampton, Roadmenders
Tuesday 30th March 2010 – Sheffield, O2 Academy 2
Wednesday 31st March 2010 – Newcastle, O2 Academy 2
Thursday 1st April 2010 – Wrexham, Central Station

MP3: The Joy Formidable – The greatest light is the greatest shade
MP3: The Joy Formidable – Cradle
MP3: The Joy Formidable – Austere
MP3: The Joy Formidable – While the Flies