Franz Ferdinand 'Writing Songs' for Possible Fourth Album

Franz Ferdinand haven't officially begun work on their fourth album but that doesn't mean the follow up to 2009's 'Tonight: Franz Ferdinand' isn't slowly taking shape. "I'm writing songs, I don't know anyone who has a period of writing songs and promoting an album, if you write songs, you write songs and keep doing it," frontman Alex Kapranos told BBC 6 Music recently.

The singer is keeping tight-lipped on the specifics of the fledgling record, along with its tentative production schedule, but he didn't deny that an early 2011 unveiling is a possibility.

"I always talk before we do releases and talk about them too much, I get excited and I don't want to ruin the surprise, I'm going to shut up now!" he said.

The band presumably hope the mooted project will arrest somewhat declining critical and commercial fortunes. Following on from their massive-selling 2004 debut, second effort 'You Could Have it So Much Better' performed well without setting the world on fire, while its successor met with a mixed reaction among critics and fans alike.

Meanwhile, Kapranos has tipped the Xx to emulate his group's 2004 Mercury Prize triumph at this year's ceremony. "I think they will probably win, and they should go to the pub," he said.