Oscar nominee and indie-rock vet will celebrate R.E.M. again at First Ave in 2025

After earning a rave reception for their R.E.M. tribute tour earlier this year, actor Michael Shannon and indie-rocker Jason Narducy were apparently feeling gravity’s pull to perform again at First Avenue and other fabled rock venues across the country next year.

The longtime pals from Chicago announced another tour celebrating another album by Gen-X’s favorite Georgia band. After performing R.E.M.’s debut “Murmur” in full for its 40th anniversary this past winter, Shannon and Narducy and their all-star band will do the same with the group’s third album, “Fables of the Reconstruction.”

Their 19-city “Fables” trek will hit First Ave on March 12 after kicking off on Valentine’s Day at Pappy & Harriet’s near Palm Springs, Calif. Tickets for the Minneapolis date go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. for $30 via axs.com.

Not only will their touring unit once again feature Narducy’s Bob Mould Band mate Jon Wurster on drums, the duo picked up Wilco’s John Stirratt to serve as bassist on the “Fables” trek.

For any R.E.M. fans who need a refresher: “Fables” showed a folkier and at times darker side to the band with such standout tracks as “Driver 8,” “Can’t Get There from Here,” “Life and How to Live It” and “Feeling Gravity’s Pull.” It kept the critical adoration for R.E.M. going strong following the similarly well-received second album, “Reckoning,” from which Shannon and Narducy also pulled heavily during their tour this past winter.

A two-time Oscar nominee known from films such as “The Shape of Water” and “Knives Out,” Shannon told the Star Tribune before the “Murmur” shows that he and Narducy felt “a lot of desire to hear this music played again” after first performing it at the Metro in Chicago for the club’s own 40th anniversary. Much of that desire stems from the fact that the members of R.E.M. have remained staunchly committed to not reuniting since disbanding in 2008 — though they did make a brief appearance together when Shannon and Narducy’s band played in Athens, Ga., in February.

Said Shannon, “Having the general public say, ‘I want this! Give this to me!’ It’s a powerful cycle of energy, and we wanted to keep it going.”

Scheduled to play First Ave in the interim with Superchunk on Oct. 16, Narducy said before the “Murmur” show that “there’s such a vacuum” for R.E.M. music nowadays.

“A lot of people in our age group want some kind of outlet to celebrate this band.”