Janet Jackson [ tickets ], in what's expected to be her first public appearance since her infamous "wardrobe malfunction" during January's Super Bowl halftime show, will host and perform on NBC-TV's "Saturday Night Live" on April 10.

Jackson's new album, "Damita Jo," hits stores on March 30. A sampling of its first single, "Just a Little While," is streaming on her website, along with its follow-up, "I Want You."

Reunited alt-rockers the Pixies [ tickets ] have added a second Eugene, OR, date to their itinerary, tickets for which will go on sale on Saturday (3/6), according to a press release. Details about the on-sale are available at the venue's website.

The new Eugene show is scheduled for April 27 at the MacDonald Theatre; the group's other upcoming dates all sold out soon after tickets went on sale, organizers said.

R.E.M. [ tickets ] frontman Michael Stipe, in a statement issued on Friday (3/5), talked about the band's progress on its forthcoming album, which is expected to hit stores this fall.

"There's a lot of anticipation in our camp for the coming album and tour; this is the most prolific period we've experienced in several years following the tour last summer," he said. "As of this week, we've got 22 completed songs to record and mix, and then choose the best tracks for the record. We've got a lot of ideas about presentation and packaging that we're throwing around, so it's high spirits and a lot of work right now. We're back to being artists."

Among the songs that will appear on the new album are "Electron Blue," "Aftermath," "Wanderlust" and "Magnetic North." Producer Pat McCarthy, who has worked with the group since 1998's "Up," again joined the band to work on the new album. Multi-instrumentalists and R.E.M.'s longtime tour-mates, Scott McCaughey, Ken Stringfellow and Bill Rieflin, are also in the studio.

Activist-rockers System of a Down will headline a benefit concert dubbed "Souls, 2004" at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles on April 24.

According to a press release, proceeds from the show will go to organizations that "work to eradicate the atrocities of all genocides across the globe, including the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), an organization that supports legislation in the U.S. Congress to recognize the Armenian Genocide that was perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire during World War I."

The U.S. has never officially recognized the Armenian Genocide, during which 1.5 million people were killed and hundreds of thousands of others deported. During a February 2000 campaign stop, George W. Bush promised to recognize the genocide if he gained the presidency, but his administration has since blocked the measure.

"More than 100 organizations have endorsed the campaign to urge Congress to pass the Genocide Resolution," System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian said in a statement. "The Vatican and the European Parliament, as well as the French, Italian, Swiss, Russian, Belgian, and many other governing bodies have officially recognized the Armenian Genocide. It's time for the United States to do the same."

The members of System of a Down are all of Armenian descent.

The opening date of Prince [ tickets ]'s upcoming tour--set for March 29 in Los Angeles--will be beamed via satellite to Regal Entertainment, Edwards and United Artist movie theaters in 32 cities. Locations and ticket information is available at Regal's website.