Watch Khruangbin’s Full Performance on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts

Matt Inman on May 17, 2018

Khruangbin, the hard-to-pronounce-but-easy-to-love Houston trio that specializes in their own brand of Thai-funk-inspired, super-chill tunes, stopped by NPR to record a straightforward and thoroughly enjoyable trio of songs from their still-limited catalog, and it’s really a perfect Thursday-afternoon break—especially if you’re still sleeping on these Texas folks. 

With Mark Speer’s intricate and delicate melodies and chords ringing out on his guitar, Laura Lee’s bouncing basslines and Donald Ray “DJ” Johnson Jr.’s tight-as-hell drum-kit beats, Khurangbin (which, as I learned from Speer at the band’s set at Bonnaroo last year, is pronounced something like “KRUNG-bin”) run through “Maria También” and “August 10,” two tracks from their latest album,
Con Todo El Mundo, which dropped earlier this year, then close out with “White Gloves,” a song from their fantastic 2015 debut, The Universe Smiles Upon You, with Johnson switching to piano and all three members doling out some vocals together—a rarity for the trio.

Not surprisingly, there is no in-between-song banter. Just great tunes. Watch below.