HANSON is excited to announce that their new record, Shout It Out, is being released today, June 8, 2010 on the band’s own 3CG Records. Already receiving rave reviews across the board, the album, which was written and produced by HANSON, augmented with special guests: Funk Brothers bassist Bob Babbitt, who played on some of Motown’s greatest hits, as well as horn arranger Jerry Hey, who worked with Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Earth, Wind and Fire and many more, has firmly re-established the band’s presence for fans and critics alike. Entertainment Weekly called the first single, “Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’” “a delciously, catchy slicy of pop-soul,” while Salon said it “may be their finest moment yet.” The New York Times noted that HANSON “has evolved into a nuanced and largely respected musical outfit,” while AbsolutePunk hailed that Shout It Out is “a decidedly mature dose of pop perfection.” Idolator exclaimed: “Don’t be surprised if there’s a Hanson revival in 2010.”

HANSON will be performing “Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’” on Lopez Tonight tonight and the Today Show on Monday June 14th. They have already performed the song on the Late Show with David Letterman and the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The video for the song, featuring “Weird” Al Yankovic, was viewed over a million times in the first few days of release, and has still has not run its course as more and more fans discover it every day. The exuberant homage to classic film The Blues Brothers recreates an iconic scene where the band’s soulful music incites over 300 people to dance in the street.

On July 21st, the band will kick off a North American tour that will go through October. The complete dates are below.

The tour dates for the North American tour are below:

Leg 1:
July
21 Buffalo, NY Club Infinity
23 Hyannis, MA Cape Cod Melody Tent
24 Cohasset, MA South Shore Music Circus
25 Philadelphia, PA Theatre of the Living Arts
27 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom
28 Richmond, VA Hat Factory
30 Asheville, NC Orange Peel
31 Raleigh, NC Lincoln Theatre

August
2 Louisville, KY Headliners
3 Nashville, TN Wild Horse Saloon
4 Memphis, TN Minglewood Hall
5 St. Louis, MO Pageant
7 Kansas City, MO The Beaumont
8 Omaha, NE Slowdown **Rooney is not on this date
10 Minneapolis, MN Music @ Zoo Outdoor Amphitheatre
12 Milwaukee, WI Pabst Theatre
13 Chicago, IL House of Blues
14 Chicago, IL House of Blues
16 Grand Rapids, MI Intersection
17 Royal Oak, MI Royal Oak Music Theatre
19 Cleveland, OH House of Blues
20 Pittsburgh, PA Carnegie Music Hall
21 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall
23 Cincinnati, OH Moonlight Gardens
24 Indianapolis, IN Egyptian Room
25 Tulsa, OK Cain’s Ballroom

Leg 2:
September
14 Mesa, AZ Piper Theater
16 Anaheim, CA House of Blues
17 Los Angeles, CA House of Blues
18 San Diego, CA House of Blues
20 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
21 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
22 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom
23 Seattle, WA The Moore
25 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
27 Spokane, WA Knitting Factory
28 Boise, ID Knitting Factory
30 Salt Lake City, UT The Depot

October
1 Boulder, CO Fox Theatre

With HANSON’s fourth studio album, The Walk, which debuted in the Top 5 on Billboard’s Independent Chart, the band has announced a new set of U.S.dates beginning September 7. The Walk Around The World Tour has a refreshed message in their goals to fight poverty in Africa and a re-tooled live set for the fans. A complete list of dates is listed below.

HANSON (www.hanson.net), known for their energizing and engaging live performances have been receiving rave reviews for The Walk tour. Absolute Punk enthuses “Among all of the incredible live performances I’ve seen this year, Hanson has risen to the top as the best” and New York’s Village Voice calls HANSON “The finest straight-up rock band in America”.

On The Walk Around The World Tour it is not HANSON that is trotting the globe (though they will be touring in South America this Fall) HANSON’s new campaign is to encourage fans and other individuals to continue the one mile walks they have hosted since last Fall to fight poverty – with a new mission of compiling enough miles to walk ‘around the world’ (24,902 Miles.) Through the campaign others can organize their own walks locally coordinated through Takethewalk.net set to launch mid-August or join HANSON for a walk during their tour. For each mile, a dollar is donated on the walker’s behalf – by the band. Most importantly fans are empowered to directly support real solutions on the ground in Africa through the tour and the bands site.

“The Walk is about taking action, no matter how small. Our generation has the power to fight global challenges by looking at tangible actions and putting them to work” said Taylor Hanson. Added Zac Hanson “Each mile shows the power of simple actions to make a difference – the real impact comes when participants see how much more they can do”.

The Walk Tour began last Fall with one mile walks helping to provide thousands of shoes to children in Poverty in South Africa with TOMS Shoes. Last November HANSON joined TOMS on their second shoe drop, delivering a whopping 50,000 pairs of shoes to children in Africa.

On the road this Fall, the band will also be featuring a special coffee table book inspired by their efforts to fight poverty and AIDS in Africa. The book, called Take The Walk presents the bands own story and the importance of individuals taking simple actions to fight poverty and disease in Africa. The book will also feature a special EP with new tracks recorded especially for the project. With both the music and the book raising further funds for aid groups in Africa, including continued support of TOMS Shoes and HIVSA.

HANSON will also continue their one-mile barefoot walks with fans, coinciding with their concerts across the US. The exact location of each day’s walk will be announced on hanson.net 3 hours in advance (if you participate in the one-mile walk, you’ll get to “jump the line” for the concert that night so you don’t need to worry about losing your place!).

Further details on purchasing tickets can be found at: www.hanson.net.

Here’s a list of cities/venues where you can catch HANSON perform on The Walk Around The World Tour – more dates to follow:

7 Sep
Portland OR
Aladdin Theatre **ACOUSTIC SHOW

8 Sep
Seattle WA
The Moore **ACOUSTIC SHOW

10 Sep
Vancouver BC, CANADA
Commodore Ballroom **ACOUSTIC SHOW

12 Sep
Calgary AB, CANADA
MacEwan Hall Ballroom **ACOUSTIC SHOW

13 Sep
Edmonton AB, CANADA
Edmonton Civic Center **ACOUSTIC SHOW

19 Sep
Oklahoma City OK
Oklahoma State Fair

21 Sep
Dallas TX
House of Blues

23 Sep
St Louis MO
The Pageant

24 Sep
Kansas City MO
Uptown Theater

26 Sep
Minneapolis MN
First Avenue

27 Sep
Milwaukee WI
The Rave

29 Sep
Cleveland OH
House of Blues

30 Sep
Columbus OH
Newport Theatre

1 Oct
Knoxville TN
Bijou Theatre

3 Oct
Nashville TN
Wildhorse Saloon

4 Oct
Louisville KY
Coyotes

6 Oct
Atlanta GA
Variety Playhouse

7 Oct
Birmingham AL
Workplay Theatre

9 Oct
Orlando FL
House of Blues

10 Oct
Charlotte NC
Amos’ Southend

12 Oct
State College PA
The State Theatre

13 Oct
Pittsburgh PA
Carnegie Music Hall

15 Oct
Baltimore MD
Rams Head Live

16 Oct
Providence RI
Lupo’s

18 & 19 Oct
Foxborough MA
Showcase Live

20 Oct
New York NY
Nokia Theatre

22 Oct
Hartford CT
Webster Theatre

23 Oct
Atlantic City NJ
House of Blues

25 Oct
Poughkeepsie NY
The Chance

26 Oct
Lancaster PA
Chameleon Club

28 Oct
Falls Church VA
State Theatre

29 Oct
Philadelphia PA
Keswick Hall

30 Oct
Asbury Park NJ
Paramount Theatre

1 Nov
Montclair NJ
Wellmont Theatre

3 & 4 Nov
Chicago IL
House of Blues

At least we know he’s not gay. Zac Hanson and his wife Kate welcomed a son, John Ira Shepherd Hanson, on Tuesday in Tulsa. We haven’t heard anything from the Hanson brothers in a while and know we know why. It’s obvious that Zac discovered women and now he has figured out that its way more interesting making babies than playing music.

In case you forgot who Hanson is we’ll give you a nice retrospective.