"It will have all the basic ingredients of an Extreme record," guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, who is also producing the as-yet-untitled album, said in a prepared statement. "The music is always funkier than most rock bands--and born a Bipolar Bastard child of Mr. Zeppelin and Mrs. Beatles."

The group's lineup now comprises original members Gary Cherone (vocals) and Pat Badger (bass), along with new drummer Kevin Figuieredo.

Bettencourt attributes the band's reformation to "rock and roll famine."

"I know it might sound crazy, but there is a massive shortage of rock and roll on this planet," Bettencourt said. "It's almost extinct. I mean the true spirit of quality rock and roll-you know, musicianship, when you would give up every moment of your day to master your instrument and create your own identity and sound so as to respectfully outdo all your past heroes whilst proudly wearing the badge of their influences.

"We realized not only are the people starved for rock and roll ... So are we. Let's eat."

Since parting ways in 1996, Extreme's members have tackled several other projects, most notably Cherone, who briefly fronted Van Halen; that union yielded the 1998 album "Van Halen 3," a set that received a lukewarm reaction from the public. Following the group's world tour behind the disc, Cherone jumped ship and went on to form Tribe of Judah with Badger and one-time Extreme drummer Mike Mangini. That group released one album: 2002's "Exit Elvis."

Bettencourt has headed up several groups, including Dramagods, a band that also featured Figuieredo. Both musicians were also members of Perry Farrell's Satellite Party, whose debut album, "Ultra Payloaded," Bettencourt produced. He and Figuieredo split from Satellite Party several months ago.

Extreme rose to fame in the early '90s. Though the group's catalog primarily comprises funk-tinged hard rock, the band became best known for the ballads "More Than Words," which topped Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart, and Top 5 hit "Hole Hearted"; both songs were featured on the band's 1990 sophomore set, "Pornograffitti."

During its original incarnation, Extreme released four studio albums and two greatest-hits collections, and racked up total sales of more than 10 million records, according to a press release. The group's most recent collection of all-new material is 1996's "Waiting for the Punchline."

Over the past several years, Extreme's original lineup--Cherone, Bettencourt, Badger and drummer Paul Geary--have linked up to play handful of concerts in the Northeast, and also performed a few shows in Japan.

Geary has focused in recent years on managing other acts, most notably fellow Boston-based hard-rockers Godsmack.

On Saturday (12/1), Extreme is slated to perform at Boston's Orpheum Theater as part of the annual Boston Music Awards ceremony.