Khruangbin

Khruangbin is a Houston-based trio active since 2004. The group consists of Laura Lee on bass, Mark Speer on guitar and Donald Johnson, Jr. on drums. Their music is instrumental and draws on alternative rock, blues, dub, funk and indie rock, alongside psychedelic and rock influences.

Formation and early development

The trio grows out of shared musical roots. Mark Speer and Donald Johnson, Jr. play in the same gospel band for years, with both also working as professional musicians. Mark begins teaching Laura Lee bass in 2009, and she develops a strong interest in the instrument and the role it plays in the music she likes. After Mark and Laura tour with Yppah on Bonobo’s 2010 American tour, they start making music together more seriously, with Donald Johnson, Jr. as the natural choice on drums.

Releases and sound

Khruangbin’s first single, A Calf Born In Winter, appears in 2014 on Night Time Stories, the offshoot of Late Night Tales. The track receives support from radio DJs including Zane Lowe, Cerys Matthews, Tom Ravenscroft and Gideon Coe, and from publications such as Test Pressing, For Folks Sake, i-D, The 405 and Ransom Note. Bonobo includes the track on his 2013 Late Night Tales compilation, which helps broaden the group’s audience.

The EP The Infamous Bill presents an expanded version of the group’s distinctive sound. Its four tracks are recorded in a remote barn in the Texas countryside, the same place where the band first rehearses. The music reflects 1960s Thai funk, along with bass-heavy psychedelic textures, Tarantino soundtracks and surf-rock influences. The name Khruangbin is a Thai term that translates literally as “Engine Fly”.