Khruangbin: Con Todo El Mundo
On their second LP, Con Todo El Mundo, Texas-based (but globally conscious) trio Khruangbin offer up a soundtrack to a grindhouse cult classic not yet filmed. A hazy Technicolor blend of Iranian funk, Latin rock and bleary-eyed soul, it’s a record custom- built for summer. Comprised of bassist Laura Lee, guitarist Mark Speer and drummer Donald “DJ” Johnson, Khruangbin specializes in tasteful touches—guitars dripping with reverb, crisp backbeats, a rumbling low-end and only occasional vocals, which take on organ-like resonance via Leslie speakers (or a suitable approximation thereof). While the band’s previous album, 2015’s The Universe Smiles Upon You , was rooted in Thai and southeast Asian styles—gleaned from tapes the trio played on long car drives—Con Todo El Mundo makes more overt moves toward American funk, though Speer’s sprightly guitars maintain a panglobal omnivorousness. “Como Te Quiero”—or “How I love you”—oozes lowrider oldie ambiance, while “Evan Finds the Third Room” rides an early hip-hop groove—think the Tom Tom Club meets Shuggie Otis. Single “Maria También” feels like something that Tarantino might conjure up in a fever dream, a steady sashay of interlocked bass, guitar and propulsive handclaps. It’s spacey music but never unrhythmic, uniformly tasteful but not predictable, either. On “Lady and Man” the band rides a steady, vibraphone-enhanced groove for a whole four minutes, only introducing ebullient group vocals—“I coulda been a doctor/ Coulda been a lawyer/ Oh come on/ Not that again”—in the last fizzy minute.