Texan trio Khruangbin's singular sound draws from a vast array of far-flung influences, yet it's accessible and familiar enough to captivate a widespread audience. The group is a logical fit for the LateNightTales series, which features notable artists presenting tracks much in the manner of a close group of friends hanging out at home, sharing personal favorites deep into the night. Khruangbin actually first broke through after Bonobo included their song "A Calf Born in Winter" on his 2013 volume, leading to a record deal ...
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Texan trio Khruangbin's singular sound draws from a vast array of far-flung influences, yet it's accessible and familiar enough to captivate a widespread audience. The group is a logical fit for the LateNightTales series, which features notable artists presenting tracks much in the manner of a close group of friends hanging out at home, sharing personal favorites deep into the night. Khruangbin actually first broke through after Bonobo included their song "A Calf Born in Winter" on his 2013 volume, leading to a record deal with the series' sister label, Night Time Stories, so the band comes full circle with their 2020 installment. The three musicians found many of these selections during their extensive world touring, and the liner notes detail how they came across the songs, as well as their reactions and other anecdotes. In several cases, they chose tracks by artists who were hugely popular in their home countries, but little known outside of them, such as Pakistani pop queen Nazia Hassan (floating post-disco gem "Khushi") and South Korean rock pioneers San Ul Lim (new wave funk treat "Don't Go"). A few of the pieces are a bit more abstract, such as the meditative "Illuminations," the title cut to Devadip Carlos Santana and Turiya Alice Coltrane's 1974 collaboration (which remains strangely overlooked within both legends' catalogs), or the performance art avant-disco of Justine & the Victorian Punks' "Still You," a 1979 Peter Gordon production. Otherwise, the group tend to focus on relaxed yet sophisticated pop with a bit of a funk tinge to it. This includes a few undeniable jams, such as the unabashedly feel-good pop of "Yetikimt Abeba" by Roha Band (described as Ethiopia's equivalent of the Funk Brothers). Khruangbin also sneak in a studio recording of their steamy cover of Kool & the Gang's "Summer Madness," a longtime staple of their live shows, and they additionally shine a spotlight on a few other friends and acquaintances from the Houston music scene. Among these are a vocoder-laced dub track by Brilliantes del Vuelo, who mixed the group's Hasta el Cielo, as well as a quirky synth instrumental by Kelly Doyle, a guitar virtuoso typically known for playing country music. Each LateNightTales album ends with a spoken short story, and this one is perhaps the best of the entire series. Bassist Laura Lee Ochoa encountered local musician Geoffrey Muller playing Erik Satie compositions on banjo at a Houston bar, and she recorded a studio performance of his arrangement of "Gnossienne No 1." On top of this, the group layered a Sun Ra-evoking poem by Tierney Malone, filtered to sound like a transmission from an astronaut. After spending the album exploring different corners of the world, the final journey to the cosmos seems quietly astonishing. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi
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