The Show
In their homebase of the Crescent City, Tank and the Bangas perform to a packed room on Bourbon Street. Featuring a full band of horn players, singers, and multi-instrumentalists, the New Orleans group play tracks off their 2022 album Red Balloon as well as deep cuts from 2019’s Green Balloon. The band’s joy and humor is more than present in their interview with Variety where they laugh, crack jokes, and explain the organic and natural recording process of Red Balloon. On their creative tour, Tank and the Bangas take us to Bangaville, their rehearsal space. The band’s music and radiant enthusiasm represents their beloved New Orleans throughout the episode.
“Live from My Den” is a digital series available on Variety.com showcasing some of today’s most extraordinary artists performing live from the creative spaces of their homes, studios, and cities most meaningful to them. Read the article and watch Tank and the Bangas’ full episode here.
The band’s music and radiant enthusiasm represents their beloved New Orleans throughout the episode.
Tank and the Bangas
Since forming at an open mic in New Orleans, Tank and the Bangas (consisting of vocalist Tank Bell, drummer Joshua Johnson, and multi-instrumentalists Norman Spence and Albert Allenback) have become renowned for their blend of jazz, funk, hip-hip, and soul, as well as their electrifying live performances. The band first rose to prominence after winning the highly lauded NPR Tiny Desk Contest. They followed up the success with their second album Green Balloon, which features modern jazz legend Robert Glasper and Alex Isley of the Isley Brothers. In 2022, Tank and the Bangas returned for their third record, Red Balloon. The album continues the band’s musical love affair with New Orleans, and features Crescent City legends Trombone Shorty and Big Freedia. Bolstered by their virtuoso and Tank’s boundless vocals, the band brings a unique lens to the historic tradition of New Orleans jazz.
