Smithereens Break Silence With Album, Tour

The Smithereens -- largely silent during the latter half of the 1990s -- will take their Rickenbacker-fueled sound to the road in support of their first album since 1994, "God Save The Smithereens" (Koch/Velvel), set for release on Oct. 19.

Rather than traveling in one lengthy stretch, the band will break the tour into a series of long weekends through Thanksgiving, according to the Smithereens official website. A similar tour is being planned for spring 2000.

Only the tour's first four dates -- all in the Northeastern United States -- have been confirmed.

Early this year, the New Jersey-based band recorded ''God Save The Smithereens'' -- their sixth full-length release -- with producer Don Fleming (Teenage Fanclub, The Posies, Hole). The first single from the album is titled ''She's Got A Way.''

The Smithereens' top-selling albums were their debut, ''Especially For You,'' and their third album, ''11.'' Both were certified gold with 500,000 copies shipped to retailers.