September 18, 2025, Mann Music Center Philadelphia, PA
It’s what happens when Motown meets Stax and hits a millennial soul. It’s the echoes of the ancestors of Marvin and Tammy Terelll of the song My Girl, of the Whispers of Otis Redding energy and a big booming voice full of power.
The time code was a firm 4/4 signature with varied tempos. But it didn’t take anything away from the music. The mix, however, did burying the vocals under the bass and guitars in a way that made it feel like being encapsulated in a bell jar of sound that reverberated in a disorienting way. This was a concert that brought out the people who love country music. It was a concert that reminded us that country music came from soul, with the background singers blending in a way that honored the legacy of the Sweet Inspirations and colored the chords like layers on a canvas, adding depth to the moment.
Dunes is a jam very reminiscent of Ann Peebles I Can’t Stand the Rain, without the stripped down instrumentals. The way the performance is rendered is complemented by this pulsing song that feels like the rain beating against the windshield as you press forward in a storm awash in sound and uncertainty. The pacing of the music is set up to force you to sit in the songs and your feelings, especially as the crescendos come like waves, washing over and pulling your further away from the realities of daily life.
Harmonies that sound like doubles of a D’Angelo falsetto and a booming bass to recalibrate your heart rate while the music lifts the soul. It is a combination that serves to remind us that music is still a gift from God. And Brittany Howard as always brings the kind of vocals that consume in the best way.
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