Ben Folds Five Reunites For 2027 U.S. Tour

Ben Folds Five will reunite pianist Ben Folds, bassist Robert Sledge and drummer Darren Jessee for their first tour since 2013. The trio announced an initial batch of nine April 2027 concerts, with additional headline shows and festival appearances planned throughout the year.

The return to the road follows September’s expanded reissue of Ben Folds Five’s self-titled 1995 debut. Billed as a 30th anniversary edition, the collection pairs the remastered album with the band’s previously unreleased first attempt at recording it. Those shelved sessions include alternate versions of “Underground” and “Philosophy,” along with an early take on “Evaporated,” which later appeared on Whatever And Ever Amen.

Ben Folds Five initially split in 2000 after releasing three studio albums. The trio subsequently reunited and issued The Sound Of The Life Of The Mind in 2012, their first new studio album in 13 years. While their last tour took place in 2013, the musicians reconvened for a five-song set at Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro, North Carolina on August 28, 2023 as part of a memorial celebrating producer Caleb Southern.

Folds has continued recording and touring outside the band, including releasing 2023’s What Matters Most and the 2024 holiday album Sleigher. His upcoming schedule also includes a series of orchestral concerts in Australia early next year.

The first leg of Ben Folds Five’s reunion tour opens April 12 at Knoxville’s Tennessee Theatre, followed by Chattanooga’s Tivoli Theatre the next night. Three Florida concerts include an April 17 stop at The BayCare Sound in Clearwater. The band then heads to Texas for shows in Austin, Houston and Irving before wrapping the announced dates April 24 at Avondale Brewing Company in Birmingham, Alabama.

Tickets for the announced concerts go on sale Friday, October 23 at 10 a.m. local time.