Tag: Con Todo El Mundo

Review: Khruangbin – Con Todo El Mundo

I am severely late to the Khruangbin party. I’d heard snippets of their gorgeous album, Con Todo El Mundo, but the full album somehow escaped me nearly the entire year. I’m glad to have caught up, however, because their third record is a lovely mix of jazz, psychedelia, and Iranian / Middle Eastern funk grooves.

Starting with the soulful “Como Me Quieres” (“How Much Do You Love Me”), guitarist Mark Speer produces such clear, beautiful tones that the general vibe around you instantly changes upon hearing them. It slows down everything and gets your mind to notice how fast everyone else is whizzing by you. “Lady and Man” is just as nice, with Speer’s love of Middle Eastern guitar riffs coming to the fore, and drummer Donald Johnson puts on a clinic in solid backing grooves (and does so through the whole record). “Maria Tambien” sizzles from the first chord and doesn’t let up for the next three minutes. You’ll swear you’re riding in a taxi through Marrakesh while you’re listening to it.

“August 10” is a blissful, laid-back track with a bass groove so subtle by Laura Lee that it’s almost like a lover’s whisper across your pillow. “Como Te Quiero” brings in psychedelic reverb on Lee’s vocal sounds to nice effect. You could set your watch to Johnson’s beats on “Shades of Man.” They’re so precise that they almost sound like they were created in the Matrix, but he’s just that good.

Lee keeps repeating “Yes” on “Evan Finds the Third Room,” a funky cut that gets you dancing and features one of her phattest bass grooves. She and Speer just cut loose while Johnson keeps them rooted enough to not go over the cliff. “A Hymn” is suitably mellow and meditative. By the time “Rules” arrives, you realize that Con Todo El Mundo is possibly the best make-out album of 2018. In fact, “Friday Morning” is a perfect song to play while fixing breakfast for your lover after a great Thursday night.

This album is one of the prettiest I’ve heard all year, and a better cure for a hectic day than Netflix and chill.

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe before you split.]

Khruangbin’s new album due January 25th. First single, “Maria Tambien,” out now.

KHRUANGBIN SIGN TO DEAD OCEANS,
ANNOUNCE NEW ALBUM CON TODO EL MUNDO OUT JANUARY 26TH 

NEW VIDEO FOR “MARIA TAMBIEN”
CELEBRATES IRANIAN WOMEN PRIOR TO 1979 REVOLUTION
https://youtu.be/7hlGqj3ImQI
(photo credit: Mary Kang)

“This is the rare record that lands on both a conceptual and instinctual level, and the disparate references feel almost deceitful in their cohesion: how could this weird idea, which snakes global influences across one another, coalesce so well?” — The New Yorker, on The Universe Smiles Upon You

“That sense of spaciousness, together with the Thai-inflected tunes, means Khruangbin sound like no one else, even as their songs shimmer with echoes of ‘Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)’ by Marvin or Curtis Mayfield’s score for Super Fly.” — The Guardian

After two years of worldwide success, unassuming Texan trio Khruangbin announce their highly anticipated second album, Con Todo El Mundo, out January 26, 2017 via Dead Oceans. Continuing their world music pedigree, the band has expanded their global influences on this record from Thai funk to sounds of Spain and the Middle East, particularly Iran, from the 1960’s, 1970’s and beyond.

Formed of Laura Lee on bass, Mark Speer on guitar, and Donald “DJ” Johnson on drums, Khruangbin’s sounds have historically been rooted in the deepest waters of world music. Their 2015 debut album, The Universe Smiles Upon You, was heavily influenced by 60’s and 70’s Thai cassettes infused with classic soul, dub and psychedelia. This unusual mix created a powerful, hypnotic signature sound that’s entranced listeners around the world.

Their second album, Con Todo El Mundo, takes its name not from a grand global idea, but from a simple one. It’s in part dedicated to bassist Laura Lee’s Mexican-American grandfather, who was a big influence on her life. She says, “My grandpa would always ask me ‘Como me quieres?’ (how much do you love me?) And he’d only ever accept one response: ‘Con todo el mundo’ (with all the world). He created his own world to live in. Khruangbin is the world we’ve created.”

Since the release of The Universe Smiles Upon You, Khruangbin have spent the past two years playing non-stop worldwide. The band’s live history ranges from a European tour with FatherJohn Misty to supporting Tycho on a US tour, a string of festival dates including Glastonbury, Bonnaroo, ACL, Outside Lands, Desert Dazed, SXSW as well as extended headline excursions. In a nod to their travels, Laura and Mark have been presenting a weekly “AirKhruang” DJ set live each Friday on their Facebook page, where the pair play a selection of music by artists from a particular city. They also hold a monthly NTS radio show called “Cabin Pressure”.

The music video for the album’s first single, “Maria Tambien,” tells the story of Iranian women prior to the revolution of 1979, celebrating their creativity, freedom and ability to express themselves, and showing a side of women in the Middle East that often isn’t seen in the Western world.

The women in the video are all part of a large network of artists, singers, dancers and songwriters who have been either exiled or silenced since the revolution. With their new video, Khruangbin hopes to bring these remarkable women back into the spotlight and honor the artistry of silenced women everywhere.

Watch Video For “Maria Tambien” —
https://youtu.be/7hlGqj3ImQI

Con Todo El Mundo Tracklist:
01. Como Me Quieres
02. Lady And Man
03. Maria Tambien
04. August 10
05. Como Te Quiero
06. Shades Of Man
07. Evan Finds The Third Room
08. A Hymn
09. Rules
10. Friday Morning

Pre-order Con Todo El Mundo — https://khruangbin.lnk.to/contodoelmundo

Download hi-res images & album art for Khruangbin — pitchperfectpr.com/khruangbin