Khruangbin

Khruangbin, whose name translates from Thai as airplane or more literally “engine fly,” formed as a globe-trotting Texas trio whose sleek, rhythm-centric sound draws primary inspiration from Thai rock and funk of the 1960s and 1970s while also folding in surf rock, dub, Iranian pop, and countless other strands. Since emerging in the early 2010s, the band’s elusive yet distinctive and immediately approachable style has reached an unusually broad listenership. After issuing their second album, Con Todo el Mundo, in 2018, Khruangbin began headlining sold-out shows worldwide and saw their tracks become staples across multiple streaming services. Although their output remained largely instrumental for the rest of the decade, they started weaving in more vocals beginning in 2020. EPs recorded with Leon Bridges bookended Mordechai, the group’s equally vocal-forward third album, while 2022 brought the full-length Ali, a collaboration with Malian guitarist Vieux Farka Touré. The quartet’s light, open-textured fourth studio set, A LA SALA, surfaced in 2024.

The group first assembled after guitarist Mark Speer and bassist Laura Lee toured with Yppah as support for Bonobo’s 2010 U.S. dates. Speer and Lee then began writing together, and Speer’s former bandmate Donald Johnson, Jr.—a busy Southern rap producer in his own right—joined on drums. An early self-released cassette and 7" preceded the inclusion of “A Calf Born in Winter” on Bonobo’s 2013 LateNightTales compilation. Strong reaction to that track led to a deal with Night Time Stories Ltd.; after a limited Record Store Day pressing of the same song, the 10" EP The Infamous Bill arrived in 2014. History of Flight, a 2015 Record Store Day release, consisted entirely of covers drawn from the band’s influences, among them Serge Gainsbourg and Yellow Magic Orchestra.

The Universe Smiles Upon You, Khruangbin’s debut full-length, landed late in 2015, followed by a remix EP the next year. Nineteen-sixteen also marked a breakthrough period: the trio supported Father John Misty across the U.K. and Europe and launched their own headline runs in both Britain and the States. Con Todo el Mundo reached the Top 20 on Billboard’s Top Independent Albums chart upon its early-2018 release, after which the band toured successfully with the Mattson 2 and Leon Bridges. By year’s end they had issued the limited concert LP Live at Lincoln Hall, a cover of Vince Guaraldi’s “Christmas Time Is Here,” and the Maribou State collaboration “Feel Good.” Mid-2019 saw the release of Hasta el Cielo, a dub-reggae reinterpretation of the previous album featuring alternate titles, echoing mixes, and two versions crafted by legendary producer Scientist.

Khruangbin next joined retro-soul vocalist and fellow Texan Leon Bridges for the February 2020 EP Texas Sun. Their third album, Mordechai, arrived that June and likewise spotlighted the band’s own singing. In November they curated their own LateNightTales installment, spotlighting global vinyl discoveries and including a studio version of their live staple cover of Kool & the Gang’s “Summer Madness.” Throughout 2021 they issued limited 12" remix singles featuring Knxwledge, Kadhja Bonet, Ron Trent, and Quantic, later compiling them as Mordechai Remixes. A second Bridges EP, Texas Moon, appeared almost exactly two years after the first. Their subsequent joint project, Ali, emerged in 2022 as a full-length tribute to Vieux Farka Touré’s celebrated father, Ali Farka Touré.

A run of live albums followed in 2023, many spotlighting artists with whom they had shared bills. Live at Stubb’s captured performances alongside Kelly Doyle, Ruben Moreno, the Suffers, and Robert Ellis; Live at Radio City Music Hall was a split release with Nubya Garcia; Live at RBC Echo Beach paired them with Men I Trust; and Live at the Fillmore Miami featured Toro y Moi. The year closed with the all-Khruangbin double album Live at Sydney Opera House. Returning to the spacious textures of earlier work, the band delivered their fourth studio album, A LA SALA, in 2024. More than a decade into their career, they earned a Best New Artist nomination at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards.