The Athens, GA-bred group retreated to the studio in March to finish off the new disc, and will re-emerge in mid-June for an outing that covers the next three months, kicking off June 16 with a benefit concert in Aspen, CO. Proceeds from that show will go to the Children's Health Foundation, which works to improve school nutrition programs nationwide.

The veteran popsters will cross the Atlantic to play a few shows in July, returning to the US for another round of dates that kick off at the end of that month. The band's full American itinerary is included below; information on the European shows can be found at the group's website.

The B-52's are working with producer Steve Osborne (KT Tunstall, New Order) on the new album, which currently lacks both a title and a release date. A March posting on the band's site indicated that it is shooting for the disc to hit stores this fall.

The new studio release would be the band's first since 1992's "Good Stuff," which is its only album since the departure of founding vocalist Cindy Wilson. Wilson returned permanently to the fold in 1998 to help record two tracks for the best-of album "Time Capsule."