Michael Shannon, Jason Narducy and friends to tour R.E.M.’s ‘Lifes Rich Pageant’ in 2026

Michael Shannon & Jason Narducy and friends have announced they’ll be heading on tour in celebration of R.E.M.’s ‘Lifes Rich Pageant’.

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The tour marks the 40th anniversary of Michael Stipe and co’s 1986 fourth studio album and follows Shannon and Narducy touring the band’s ‘Murmer’ in 2024 and ‘Fables of the Reconstruction’ this year. The UK leg of the latter is set to kick off on August 19 in Manchester, before making stops in Glasgow, Nottingham, Bristol and London. You can purchase tickets here.

Now, Shannon has revealed that they’ll be heading on the road once again in 2026, though no further details have currently been announced.

He shared the news on Monday night (March 17) during an interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. The actor wore a ‘Monster’ t-shirt, paying homage to R.E.M.’s 1994 album. Fallon told Shannon that was his favourite of the band’s LP’s, and tried to persuade him to tour that one too, to which he responded: “That would be quite a few years we’d have to keep this going.”

Their 2025 tour will see Shannon & Narducy as well as drummer Jon Wurster, bassist Nick Macri, guitarist Dag Juhlin and keyboardist Vijay Tellis-Nayak perform ‘Fables of the Reconstruction’ in full each night as well as some of R.E.M’s biggest hits.

The string of dates also sees the group take over London’s The Garage which is near Livingston Studios, where the album was originally recorded with producer Joe Boyd.

The live shows also follow the group’s previous run of dates in honour of R.E.M’s ‘Murmur’, which saw the four original members of the band reunite for the first time in 17 years at the tour’s Athens stop in the US.

In a press release, Narducy said: “After Michael and I took the band on the road playing Murmur, we discussed possibly trying something again in 2025. It will be the 40th anniversary of Fables Of The Reconstruction so we will open with that album, in sequence. Then we will dig deep into the R.E.M. catalogue to round out the performance. Each show will have unique setlists. We love celebrating the music of this great band.”

Shannon and Narducy’s tour saw all four members of the band – Stipe, Bill Berry, Peter Buck and Mike Mills – reunite in January at the 40 Watt Club venue in their home city of Athens.

It comes just over a year after the band did the same thing in 2024, but unlike that appearance where they simply attended and gave a brief speech, the band actually all performed together, giving fans a surprise rendition of ‘Pretty Persuasion’.

The band previously all played together for a surprise performance of ‘Losing My Religion’ after they were inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame last June, shortly after their first interview as a group in 30 years aired on CBS.

It was the first time the band had performed together publicly since 2009.

R.E.M. broke up in 2011 after 31 years together. Bill Berry had previously departed the band in 1997, with Stipe, Peter Buck and Mike Mills continuing as a trio. The drummer reunited with the group a handful of times in the ’00s, including a performance at the Georgia Theatre in Athens in 2006.

During their interview with CBS last summer R.E.M. confirmed they never reunite as a full-time band, saying that it would “never be as good” if they did.

In other news, Shannon alongside David Krumholtz, Kevin Corrigan and Jon Wurster played their first show as a new indie-rap group in New York in December.

Dubbed Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon, the debut gig was announced by Wurster on Instagram, who referred to Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon as “an exciting musical concept” bringing “improvised #rocknrollweirdness”. He went on to invite an audience to “bathe in the hypnotic improv grooves” provided by himself, Corrigan, and Shannon, which Krumholtz freestyle rapped over.

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