Eels [ tickets ], who last year mounted an "Eels with Strings" tour that featured bandleader Mark Oliver "E" Everett backed by a string ensemble, have unveiled plans for a new batch of shows dubbed the "Live and In Person! No Strings Attached" tour.

The outing begins with a late-May pair of warm-up shows in the Los Angeles area, and then works the North American club and theater circuit through mid-June. Details are included below.

A European outing will follow the North American leg. More information about that trek is available at Eels' website.

The tour announcement follows the late-February release of "With Strings: Live at Town Hall"--a CD and DVD that were recorded during last year's tour--and the upcoming shows will be Eels' second full-fledged outing behind their 2005 studio album "Blinking Lights and Other Revelations."

"We're very happy that everyone's enjoying the 'Town Hall with Strings' album and film," Everett said in a statement. "It was a great night and tour for us, but that was SO 2005. We're into something a little different now. 'Blinking Lights' is a big album (33 tracks to be exact) and it deserves at least two world tours in its honor."