New Orleans quartet Tank and the Bangas are such a fun group of people that even over a zoom line from New York, we were all laughing our heads off within minutes. We’re just going to get the…
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
New Orleans quartet Tank and the Bangas are such a fun group of people that even over a zoom line from New York, we were all laughing our heads off within minutes. We’re just going to get the basics out of the way here and let you get straight to the video, because the vibe during the interview carries over even more into their performance of songs from their bangin’ third studio album, “Red Balloon,” which came out last week on Verve Forecast. In it, you’ll meet and hear a stellar performance from singer Tarriona “Tank” Ball, saxist Albert Allenback, drummer Joshua Johnson and keyboardist Norman Spence.
The Grammy-nominated group’s sound is a uniquely New Orleans-flavored combination of R&B, rock, funk and hip-hop, and the album was born out of the pandemic-ordered break from the band’s normally rigorous touring schedule. The hiatus gave the band space to breathe, and the end result is a group of songs “reflecting on the ills of America while also celebrating the beauty of Black life.” It features contributions from Lalah Hathaway, Big Freedia, Jacob Collier, Trombone Shorty, Jamison Ross, The Hamiltones, Georgia Anne Muldrow and Wayne Brady.
And in fact, next month they launch a tour with Big Freedia and Trombone Shorty, including dates at Los Angeles’ Hollywood Bowl, New York’s Central Park Summerstage, Denver’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre and many more — the current tour routing can be found below.
New episodes of “Live From My Den” will premiere each week exclusively via Variety.com. “Live From My Den” is made possible and brought to life by Hard Rock and in partnership with Fujifilm North America Corporation (Fujifilm).
June 10—Hampton Beach, NH—Hampton Beach Casino†
June 11—Boston, MA—Leader Bank Pavilion†
June 13—New York, NY—Central Park Summerstage†
June 14—Buffalo, NY—Artpark†
June 15—Toronto, CA—Massey Hall†
June 17—Providence, RI—Bold Point Park†
June 18—Vienna, VA—Wolftrap†
June 21—Cary, NC—Koka Booth Amphitheatre†
June 22—Atlanta, GA—Chastain Park†
June 24—Grand Rapids, MI—Meijer Gardens†
June 25—Detroit, M—Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre†
June 26—Chicago, IL—Ravinia†
June 28—Denver, CO—Red Rocks Amphitheatre†
June 29—Salt Lake City, MO—Red Butte Gardens†
July 1—Missoula, MT—Kettlehouse Amphitheater†
July 2—Seattle, WA—Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery†
July 3—Troutdale, OR—McMenamins Edgefield †
August 10—Los Angeles, CA—Hollywood Bowl†
August 11—Saratoga, CA—Mountain Winery†
August 12—Saratoga, CA—Mountain Winery†
August 13—Santa Barbara, CA—Santa Barbara Bowl†
August 14—San Diego, CA—Rady Shell†
*w/ Big Freedia
†w/ Trombone Shorty
