Singer Martin Fry is taking a new version of '80s pop band ABC [ tickets ] out on the road with a crowded schedule of dates in May and June, and promises the release of a new ABC studio album in the near future.

The British act--whose early-'80s hits included "Poison Arrow" and "Look of Love"--will kick off its tour with a May 6 appearance in Agoura Hills, CA. The band will tackle 21 dates on its outing, including one Canadian appearance.

The current ABC features only Fry from the original lineup, although drummer David Palmer, who joined the band in 1982, has been frequently playing with Fry of late and is expected to be part of ABC's upcoming tour. A similar version of ABC toured briefly in the US last September.

ABC's websiteclaims that Fry is "putting the finishing touches" on a new studio album for the band, with an expected release date of "early 2006." The album is "rumoured" to be entitled "Traffic," according to the site, and a preview of one of the new tracks, "Ride," can be found on the Lost World Trek website, which chronicles Fry's recent trip to Venezuela with other musicians to raise money for medical research.

ABC's last studio album was 1997's "Skyscraping."