
Updated - many more dates added. Beat Surrender favourite Franz Nicoly is touring in Europe from March 1st, no UK shows this time but hopefully soon. 3/1 Cafe Borowka, Wroclaw, PL 3/2 Klubokawiarnia Redakcja, PL 3/3 Pub Lamus, Gorlice, PL 3/4 Kawiarnia Naukowa, Krakow, PL 3/5 Tektura, Lublin, PL 3/6 Galeria Funky, Warsaw, PL 3/7 Meskalina, Poznan, PL 3/8 Ramones Museum, Berlin DE 3/9 Schaubude, Kiel DE 3/10 Villa Nachttanz, [...]

Beat Surrender favourite Franz Nicoly is touring in Europe from March 1st, no UK shows this time but hopefully soon. 3/1 Cafe Borowka, Wroclaw, PL 3/2 Klubokawiarnia Redakcja, PL 3/3-6 TBA PL 3/7 Meskalina, Poznan, PL 3/8 Ramones Museum, Berlin DE 3/9 Schaubude, Kiel DE 3/10 Villa Nachttanz, Heidelberg DE 3/12 Le 5eme Avenue, Orleans FR 3/13 Pop In, Paris FR 3/14 Mac Daid's, Le Havre FR 3/15 Le Galion, Lorient FR 3/16 Ecuyes, Caen FR 3/17 Petit London, Toulouse [...]

There were so many good albums this year that I couldn't make the decision to rank them, and I know that's not the most important decision anyway, so this year's best-of list is in groups with no internal order. This is the art I spent my cherished/wasted time consuming this year. Hope everybody's upcoming year is full of growth. Albums, Best of the Best: Franz Nicolay - Do the Struggle - tentative cynic-folk, sincere show-rock ( 9B review ) [...]

As I've mentioned on many occasions, I keep a running playlist throughout the year. You've seen bits and pieces of it here but as 2012 comes to a close, here is the final product. Full of the singles that I listened to on repeat to the tracks I put on every mixtape this year and now with the added bonus of being influenced by the year end lists of my friends and contemporaries. It's all over the place genre-wise, but I think it is a pretty solid collection. Amanda Palmer - [...]

This past Wed I got an IM from my good friend up in Brooklyn: Her: Hey are you still in NY? Me: No, I'm back in Philly why? Her: Oh, Bomb The Music Industry is playing with Franz Nicolay. Me: Oh, well then I obviously should be in NY then. I instantly bought a ticket on Megabus, and after enduring some traffic on the NJ Turnpike, headed out to Brooklyn's Public Assembly. On the way since Bomb The Music Industry ( like Wu-Tang ) is for the children and the [...]
Instead of just presenting our favorites, as much as we love to rattle on about the songs and records we loved here, we've asked some experts- people we have befriended in the process, those we admire and respect, our favorite musicians- what records they loved in 2012. FRANK TURNER : JIM LOCKEY & THE SOLEMN SUN - DEATH Frank Turner is a folk punk hero. If you're reading this, you've probably heard of him. He is pretty much our favorite musician and [...]
I know I waxed philosophical about the value of an album as a whole earlier this week but don't get me wrong- I treasure my iPod and it is jam packed with playlists with every theme under the sun. Including a "Best of..." for 2012. Here is the ten I've chosen from that ...pretty extensive list that has soundtracked my year. Melanie and Barlow contributed ten of their carefully cultivated choices each to help round it out and here's our official Best Tracks of 2012 . [Tiffiny] Apologies, I Have None - The [...]

Franz Nicolay has sent us the third and final part of his tour dispatches documenting his recent US Tour , Franz Nicolay .
Suggested NYC Concerts The Best Indie Shows Hand-picked Each Week Now that we've nearly fully recovered from our food comas, it's time to get out and see some music this week! It's getting colder and colder but the shows are ramping up before they take a break for the holidays. Celebrate the coming of Christmas by giving back, something that can be as easy as checking out a Sandy relief concert like the one at Pianos on Thursday night. Make sure [...]

I think it's customary - if not a tradition at this point - that when Frank Turner goes on tour I have to go and bother him. Myself and, new Ruckuser, Hannah caught up with Frank in Leeds to talk about everything from Movember, to touring with Tim Barry - a man who he's wanted to bring to the UK forever - and the darker side of his forthcoming record. We even managed to get him to spill the beans on a forthcoming EP, but you'll have to watch the interview to find out when you can expect [...]

With about a week left on his US Tour , Franz Nicolay has sent us the second of his dispatches from the road. Along with that, he also sends us a deep though about who - terrifyingly - may be the sole heirs to the legacy of the Minutemen .

This was a very long, incredibly stressful day. The election had me on edge and combined with the time change, it had been awhile since I'd had a good night's sleep. Thankfully the results were called before I left the house and I got my second wind with the Obama victory which carried me back into Denver for the night. The Lion's Lair is a tiny dive bar on East Colfax. It was fairly quiet, but it was Tuesday night (and I imagine the majority of Denver was off somewhere cooler celebrating the legalization of marijuana). I [...]
Do The Struggle, produced by Oktopus (dälek), is Franz Nicolay's third solo LP. The multi-instrumentalist has played with various groups, including the Hold Steady and was a touring member for Against Me!. Today, Nicolay makes MAGNET a mix tape. Check it out below. "Did Your Broken Heart Make You Who You Are?" (download): Arthur Russell [...]

Having kicked off his US Tour in October, Franz Nicolay has begun sending us dispatches from the road. He sent us his first last week but we ran a bit behind due to the hurricane which knocked out at least one editor's power, internet and water - not to mention all the damn food in the fridge. But your editor digresses for your editor doesn't want to think about throwing out all the food again. Anyway, you don't want to know about all that, so here is the first episode of [...]

I took most of October off from concert going due to a variety of reasons but holy cow November has some amazing shows and I'm ready to jump right back in. November 1st / Hi-Dive / Denver Two Cow Garage [ tickets ] This band is incredibly special to me and always put on an amazing, heartfelt as fuck show. If you've never seen them, prepare for an experience. If you have before, you know what I'm talking about. [...]

The South West of England has become somewhat of a hub for great music in recent years. The likes of Crazy Arm, Bangers, Some Sort Of Threat and Muncie Girls have all emerged from the Devonshire area in recent years, but it’s The Cut Ups that were amongst the first bands to come out of this musical nerve center. Eight years after making their debut, The Cut Ups have released ‘Building Bridges. Starting Here.’ The follow up to 2009’s ‘The High And Mighty’, the new record oozes a typically British punk rock sound. Though the chugging [...]

© 2012 Franz Nicolay by Franz Nicolay Our roommate on the sleeper train from L'viv to Kiev is a stocky, ham-fisted 45-year-old veterinarian with a lot of stories and opinions. He had friend had a green card to America in the '80s, but he got caught stealing from the grain quota and now he can't go to America ever. He's got the requisite conspiracy theories: They didn't kill Bin Laden, it could've been "any tall guy with a beard" - for that matter, I, Franz, look a little like Bin [...]

'The Gold War' is the latest single (I guess) from The Cut Ups. Taken from the band's third record 'Building Bridges. Starting Here', the four (occasionally five) piece from Exeter are known for totally ripping it up they bring nothing more than their A-game on this track. Their new record comes highly recommended - I'll be writing my thoughts on it later this week - and you should definitely be checking it out if you're into indie punk and Billy Bragg.
Every day, Daily Downloads offers 10 free and legal mp3 downloads, plus free and legal live sets from around the internet. Today's free and legal mp3 downloads: Beca Dreams : "Born to Fly" [mp3] from Born to Fly (out November 20th) search for more Beca Dreams posts at Largehearted Boy The Capsules : "Across the Sky" [mp3] from Northern Lights [...]