R.E.M. tour dates!

NEW YORK (REM Official Website) - R.E.M. has confirmed a 26-date fall North American tour, its first such undertaking since 1999. The trek begins Sept. 1 at Seattle's annual Bumbershoot festival and tickets for some shows begin going on-sale as soon as April 12. A number of support acts are set for various portions of the tour, including Wilco, Ed Harcourt, and Sparklehorse, with others to be announced.

R.E.M. will kick off a European tour June 27 at the U.K.'s Glastonbury Festival. The group is working on its next album, due early next year. A new anti-war song, "The Last Straw," was posted on the band's Web site earlier this week. The fall tour is expected to coincide with the release of a career retrospective, featuring a handful of brand new songs.

Here are R.E.M.'s tour dates:

Sept. 1: Seattle (Bumbershoot Festival)
Sept. 3: Portland, Ore. (New Amphitheater, w/ Wilco)
Sept. 6: Mountain View, Calif. (Shoreline Amphitheatre, w/ Wilco)
Sept. 7: San Diego (Street Scene)
Sept. 10: Los Angeles (Hollywood Bowl, w/ Wilco)
Sept. 11: Las Vegas (Thomas and Mack Center, w/ Wilco)
Sept. 13-14: Morrison, Colo. (Red Rocks, w/ Wilco)
Sept. 16: Minneapolis (Xcel Energy Center, w/ Ed Harcourt)
Sept. 17: Kansas City, Mo. (Starlight Theatre, w/ Ed Harcourt)
Sept. 19: Dallas (NextStage, w/ Ed Harcourt)
Sept. 20: Houston (Mitchell Pavilion, w/ Ed Harcourt)
Sept. 21: Austin, Texas (Austin City Limits)
Sept. 23: New Orleans (Lakefront Arena, w/ Sparklehorse)
Sept. 24: Birmingham, Ala. (Oak Mountain Amphitheater, w/ Sparklehorse)
Sept. 26: Chicago (United Center, w/ Sparklehorse)
Sept. 27: Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio (Blossom Music Center, w/ Sparklehorse)
Sept. 28: Auburn Hills, Mich. (Palace of Auburn Hills, w/ Sparklehorse)
Sept. 30: Toronto (Air Canada Centre, w/ Sparklehorse)
Oct. 1: Philadelphia (Mann Center)
Oct. 3-4: Jersey City, N.J. (Liberty State Park)
Oct. 5: Boston (Tweeter Center)
Oct. 8: Washington, D.C. (MCI Center)
Oct. 9: Chapel Hill, N.C. (Dean Smith Center)
Oct. 11: Atlanta (Phillips Arena)