Let’s get the big question answered right away. “The name means ’airplane’ in Thai,“ says Khruangbin’s Laura Lee. “We were listening to a lot of Thai music when we started the band, and I tried to learn Thai at the time, and khruangbin was one of the first words I learned, and it was really fun to say. And it seemed fitting — because we were listening to Thai music at the time — to name ourselves after what we were inspired by.“
Frequently mislabeled as a Thai-funk band, omnidirectionally influenced trio Khruangbin — comprising bassist Lee, along with guitarist Mark Speer and drummer Donald “DJ“ Johnson — are actually from Houston, Texas. In St. Paul for a show at the Turf Club, Khruangbin stopped at The Current for a session hosted by David Safar.
As evidence of their many inspirations, the new album from Khruangbin has a Spanish name, Con Todo El Mundo, and features the hit single, “Maria También,“ also in Spanish. Not that Khruangbin have lost any love for Thai music. “The first album was inspired by Thai music and the name was Thai, so I think it was an easy thing to write, to say that Khruangbin was Thai funk,“ Lee says. “But we pull from music from all over the world.
“It’s a disservice to those bands from Thailand who are doing really, really amazing work,“ Speer adds. “That’s some of my favorite music in the world.“
Althought the members of Khruangbin say that Houston isn’t home to a lot of record labels or other music-industry infrastructure, the city has launched the careers of many accomplished musicians. Lee notes that many, many Houston musicians have become highly regarded session players, and Speer and Johnson met one another playing music in the church where Beyoncé grew up.
Plus, in the town of Burton, Texas, is where Khruangbin can find the space — and the barn — where they can record their music. “It’s dirt floors, it’s a big corrugated tin building; you can open up all the doors,“ Speer explains. “Usually to prepare for the rehearsals, we’ll get all the bees out and make some noise so the little critters can know to find another place to be for the next couple days, and then we just bring in some gear and set it up and that’s it.“
The space allows the band to be as loud or as quiet as they need to be. It’s a farm-to-(turn)table approach to music that seems to be suiting Khruangbin very well.
From Khruangbin’s 2018 release, Con Todo El Mundo, available on Dead Oceans.
Watch Khruangbin’s “Lady and Man“:
Connect with The Current:
Become a member:
1 view
694
213
2 months ago 01:00:16 1
Khruangbin | Austin City Limits Music Festival 2024 | Full Set
3 months ago 00:03:11 1
Khruangbin - Maria También (Live at The Current)
3 months ago 00:03:15 1
Khruangbin - Maria También (Live on KEXP)
3 months ago 00:52:22 1
Khruangbin @ Villain | Pitchfork Live
3 months ago 00:05:00 1
Vieux Farka Touré et Khruangbin - Diarabi (Official Video)
3 months ago 00:04:56 1
Khruangbin - A Love International (Official Video)
4 months ago 00:03:15 1
Khruangbin - Dearest Alfred (MyJoy) – Knxwledge Remix (Official Video)
4 months ago 01:03:28 1
Khruangbin Vibes Vol. 19: Gotts Street Park, Saâda Bonaire, Mildlife, Matt Duncan, John Lurie...
4 months ago 00:07:16 1
Khruangbin on Austin City Limits “People Everywhere“
4 months ago 00:04:34 1
Khruangbin & Leon Bridges - B-Side (Official Video)
4 months ago 00:06:01 1
Khruangbin - August Twelve
5 months ago 00:00:23 1
Khruangbin - Time (You and I) - Boise 7/13/22
5 months ago 00:03:15 1
Khruangbin - White Gloves
5 months ago 00:05:11 1
Leon Bridges & Khruangbin - Mariella (Visualizer)
5 months ago 00:24:38 4
Khruangbin x Tommy Guerrero & more | coastal sunset playlist (slowed + reverb)
5 months ago 00:03:27 1
Khruangbin - Dern Kala | Audiotree Music Festival 2018
5 months ago 01:21:45 6
ПОСЛЕДНИЙ подкаст: Bring Me The Horizon, Knocked Loose, . и многие другие
6 months ago 00:05:44 6
Khruangbin - Time (You and I) (Official Video)
6 months ago 00:25:07 1
Bekifft am Steuer – Wie sinnvoll ist der neue THC-Grenzwert? | Y-Kollektiv
6 months ago 00:04:08 1
Fifteen Fifty-Three
6 months ago 00:23:46 1
В поисках “Страшного оврага“. 09 июня 2024.
6 months ago 00:00:14 1
Khruangbin - Lady and Man - Boise 7/13/22
6 months ago 01:35:49 1
Private Event gig with Boss RC-600 at The Exploratorium in San Francisco #rc600 #livelooping