CD Review: Hanson "Shout It Out”

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The brotherly Hanson act of Tulsa puts out a fifth album since their 1997 breakthrough.

The brotherly-lovin’ trio from T-town is back with its fifth studio album since its 1997 breakthrough, and “Shout It Out” proves once and for all that the Hansons have long since grown up from the “MMMBop”-er days of their brilliant novelty-act childhood days to young men of solid pop-rock-crafting talents and hearts full of soul.

The Tulsa siblings — Isaac Hanson, vocals, electric, acoustic, 12-string and nylon guitar, bass, mandolin, keys, claps; Taylor Hanson, vocals, piano, B3, organ, Wurlitzer, Rhodes, drums, congas, percussion, claps; and Zachary Hanson, vocals, drums, percussion, claps, piano, Wurlitzer — pretty much handle this whole rhythm-and-blues-seasoned burrito, with a good bit of help from a session horn section (and a guy named Ryan Williams playing an empty Jack Daniel bottle) on tunes such as the immensely danceable “Give a Little” and “Make It Out Alive.”

The Hanson men continue to channel their R&B heroes on such self-penned tunes as the blue-eyed, harmony-coated, Hall and Oates-y rocker “Thinkin’ ‘Bout Somethin’ , ” the heartfelt, piano-laced Stevie Wonder-ment of “Musical Ride,” and tracks such as the Rhodes-riddled, anthemic mid-tempo rocker “These Walls” and the pulsating invigorator “And I Waited,” which are distinctly Hanson-imagined.

There’s not a sign here of the alternative power-pop side-trip Taylor Hanson took last year in the super-group experiment called Tinted Windows, with Fountains of Wayne bassist/singer Adam Schlesinger, Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha and Cheap Trick drummer Bun E. Carlos, which is lamentable, but this is the Hanson brothers continuing to grow a sound of their own, and it is becoming strong and sturdy indeed.

— Gene Triplett