EBR Ep. #28 Write-Up on Khruangbin

For the 28th episode of Early Bird Radio we did a SoundFile on Houston, Texas trio Khruangbin (@khruangbin).

Khruangbin is an insanely talented three-piece band bound by ZERO genre. They proudly call Houston, Texas home & are comprised of Laura Lee (@lauraleezy) on bass, Mark Speer (@robotdouble) on guitar & Donald “DJ” Johnson (@khruangbeanz) on drums.

Having been on the scene for almost a decade at this point (debut in 2015), Khruangbin is finally receiving the type of recognition that had long evaded the group. The type of recognition that has now allowed them to tour the world, headline some of the most important festivals & venues across the globe & establish a fanbase that has made them a streaming powerhouse.

The initial connection came in 2004 when Speer & Johnson were introduced to each other while playing in a gospel band at Rudy Rasmus’ infamous St. John’s Methodist Church in Houston (Beyonce, Solange, etc.). A few years down the line Speer was introduced to Lee via mutual friends & began bonding over middle eastern culture. Fast-forward to Lee learning to play bass &, ultimately, becoming solid enough to join Speer on tour with a band called Yppah in 2010. The end result was the courage to follow a musical vision that was unique to them, a band of their own; which came full circle when DJ was asked to do his thing on the drums. The rest, they say, is history.

Many marketers & promotors tried to tell them that the name, Khruangbin, may not be the most palatable if their goals were to capture a wide spread audience. Thankfully, they stuck with the name that means “airplane” in Thai & has come to symbolize the international set of influences that shaped the band's formation & continues to propel it forward. This includes funk, dub, reggae, rock, soul, pop & hip hop from all over the world. Places like Houston, Africa, Thailand, China, the Middle East, Iran & so much more. As I said from the jump, a band bound by ZERO genre.

This mix captures the influences & culture from people of all different walks of life. Artists like @orionsbelte, @deryayildirim_grupsimsek, @kikagaku.moyo, @allahlas & more.

Enjoiii the tunes 🐣🎶