Pop-rock stalwarts R.E.M. [ tickets ] have announced they will enter the recording studio to work on a new album later this spring, following the band's March 12 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

After the induction ceremony--for which the Athens, GA, group's original lineup of Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and retired drummer Bill Berry will be on hand--the group will begin work on its 14th studio album, and first since 2004's "Around the Sun."

Berry, the group's original drummer, retired from performing in 1997, following the release of 1996's "New Adventures in Hi-Fi." The band has continued on as a three-piece, enlisting hired hands and occasionally drum machines in both the studio and on the road to fill Berry's slot.

Stipe, Buck and Mills have lined up Grammy-winning producer Jacknife Lee (U2, Snow Patrol) for the as-yet-untitled new set.

"We are psyched to work with Jacknife Lee," bassist Mills said in a press release. "We've got a great batch of songs, and can't wait to put them down."

"R.E.M. are consistently one of the Great Bands, if not the greatest," Lee said in the statement. "The new songs they've written are some of their most exciting and visceral yet. They're a beacon for any band wishing to remain honest and challenging."

The group will be inducted into the Hall by Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder in a ceremony at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel that will air live on VH1 Classic, AOL and MHD TV.

Last September, R.E.M. released a two-disc retrospective, "And I Feel Fine ... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-1987," which included material from the group's early years on the indie I.R.S. label.