May 16, 2018 | Bob Boilen -- It was daylight but the music was dark and moody. And despite having the office lights turned on high, it was Khruangbin's trance-inducing tone that set the mood and carried me away.
This trio from Houston, Texas is heavily inspired by 1960s and '70s funk and soul from, of all places, Thailand. That musical passion has taken them on a journey that, these days, incorporates music from Spain, Ethiopia and the Middle East. Khruangbin's largely instrumental music is grounded in Laura Lee's bass, with Mark Speer playing those melodic, richly reverbed guitar sounds and Donald "DJ" Johnson on drums and piano.
Two of the three songs performed at this Tiny Desk Concert are from their 2018 album Con Todo El Mundo, which is dedicated in part to Laura Lee's Mexican-American grandfather. He'd often ask her how much she loved him and the response that pleased him most was when she would say, "con todo el mundo," (with all the world.)
The third track in this performance is one of the band's first forays into vocals, from their 2015 debut album, The Universe Smiles Upon You. "White Gloves" gently pays homage to a "classy lady" who was "a fighter" and who "died in a fight." Its open-ended lyrics could imply a battle that was violent or an illness. It isn't clear. What is clear is the reverence in the song and in this music - music that strays from typical instrumental songs with heavy beats. This is music to sway to and to lift you beyond the day to day.
SET LIST
"Maria También"
"August 10"
"White Gloves"
CREDITS
Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Noelle Smith; Creative Director: Bob Boilen; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Kara Frame, Dani Lyman; Editor: Ben Naddaff-Hafrey; Production Assistant: Joshua Bote; Photo: Eslah Attar/NPR.
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I heard this drummer got lost in the wilderness with no phone or watch and when they found him 3 years later he knew what second it was.
underrated comment lol
they are keeping him hostage
☢Atomic Drummer🥁 w a ⏱Swiss Movement🇨🇭
Yeah it's... 🇿🇦 Durban Poison ☠ Makes ya Think¡!¡
I rhink this....it was his mom who died. He has a pretty bad acar in his face. I think its a burn scar. Or at least....ir mafw this song. I watched their dynamic. They are feeling for him.
Khruangbin: a man on guitar. A woman on bass. And Father Time.
This is am amazing joke
Hahahaha I love it
I just had to upvote this to 666
positively vibin' on yo comment bro
Father time?
The fact that they took the effort to build a whole human body around a drum machine to make it look like a drummer, just amazing.
I heard a rumor that they work on a 2.0 version that can even smile... then the illusion becomes even more real. humans are incredible.
@2:34 - @2:35 that smile!
@@domage: No, that was just a voltage surge error. 😉Wait and see. There's something else to come 🤔
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Yo🤣😂😂😂
I envy people hearing Khruangbin for the first time.
First timer
First time myself
First timer🤘
ME!!! I’m People! 😮
First timer
Drummer adjusts half a beat after every 5 millionth beat to compensate for earth's equinox tilt.
This is the best one lol
👌😆
I will have to report this comment, it is an understatement of drummer timing! I can stop laughing man... @raghav_Pareek you are the best!!
🤣🤣🔥
Cargo Pocket
The reason why everything is so perfectly synched is because the drummer is a high level telepath controlling the guitarist and bass player who are just vessels for his will.
That's why they have wigs to hide their telepathic receptors.
maaaaaan
people think you're joking but this is actually true
I had just been thinking, "This perfectly reflects the totality of my existence"--you nailed it perfectly.
yes. I approve
Reading the comments, all I imagine and want is the drummer himself reading them with the biggest smile ever. This comment section is timeless!
Quite unlike the drummer
Ba dum tss
😂
I just imagine him reading these comments but with his emotionless drummer face 😂
still smoking! chong out !
I come back to this video from time to time to set up my watch
The drummer tells the sun exactly when to rise every morning
🌄
ayo this got me rollin. Ty
😂😂
he create metronome
I mean the dude is ON TIME
This drummer has never been in the wrong place at the wrong time
Not fashionably late, not fashionably early, not a minute man. This man is on time at all times
I died at this one ... lol.
Lol incredible
Laura knows it too -- when they both pause at 2:25 and she looks over to watch for him picking it back up -- then the knowing smile when they resume. Love this band so much.
Whiplash likes this comment
Every month I am coming back to this video for reading drummer comments. Amazing band!
This is my first time seeing this concert, but I've watched it three times in a row so far just reading the comments about the drummer. Do they ever end I'm getting hungry and my battery is low
Love the drummer comments👍
@@jamesbump4765 No. The drummer comments are *almost* as consistent as the drummer. Please, I’ve been here for 3 months. Send Help.
Not many people know this but our clocks and calenders were calibrated using this drummers heartbeat
My guy on the drums is so in tune that every version of him in every multi-verse is doing the exact same thing at the exact same time...always.
Underrated comment
Ha, ha this comment!!
excellent, but "so in TIME"
Certainly explains the blank stare
Interesting
One of the best comment sections I've read in a long drummer.
Underrated comment
Nice one
Well done;)
Haaaaaa!! Me too
I actually laughed at this one. Cheers mate.
Forgive me im tripping on acid, but August 10 just moved me to tears, man that was beautiful. Might just be the best player to touch a Stratocaster since Hendrix. What a beautiful Strat that is too, really a pleasure to see it played so well, they are one. Its so great how this 11 minutes 32 seconds of time and space is here, saved in eternity for us to enjoy, and still be hit by years later. those few minutes have me captivated, what a soul massage. Music is special 💚
Out of a great comment section, this is the best comment. I got real joy just from imagining how joyful you were in the moment you wrote this.
dont forget your strawberries next time
Liquid or paper or gel tab?
Feel you bro everything is forgiven
No forgiveness needed, do you. I love this trio and they are on my shroom playlist, everytime.
Since I’ve started listening to Khruangbin and this drummer I’ve never been late to anything
The drummer kept time so well that we as a society realized we no longer need daylight savings.
i love you
i love you
i love you
I love you
👌
The clock in the room take a look at the drummer to check the time.
🤣🤣🤣🤝
That's Melanin baby!!!
Well done
666th like let’s go
the best one
can we appreciate that we are all here in this moment in time and we are able to appreciate this wonderful music together.
The quintessential high statement. Love it. Should be at the top. ;)
Yeah, specially the drummer
What a thoughtful thing to say 😊
We had no choice. The drummer willed it to be so.
I travelled back to 1955 and saw this band. When I returned to 1985 the drummer was still in time
This drummer has such a good sense of time that he probably doesn't find christopher nolan movies confusing.
this comment is golden
The Drummer doesn't watch Memento. Memento watches him.
this comment is on an other level
Dead funny lol
Only supreme people will pause here to appreciate this comment
FunFact: The drummer is the creator, publisher, chief writer, columnist, editor, regional manager, and head of distribution of Time Magazine.
Fr?
@@GabrielAlves-yo2sn srry bro, its a joke, a good one
FunFact.... they use ripoff guitar and bass. thats actually true :)
Get it yet?
@@variklane7032 😎👍
I promise you guys, as both a guitarist and a drummer I can confirm that as impressive as this drummer is, the guitarist is something else. Literally improv soloing while playing rhythm all show when I saw them
Mark speer is amazing. He's my favorite guitarist.
Top 5 performance I’ve seen live
Yeah, in August 10, with all the kudos to the drummer, the transitions between the two guitar lines seem so effortless here that in my awe I didn't even notice the lack of the back-up chords while the lead guitar is playing.
No one noticed that the beautiful lady is playing a 70$ second hand bass that costs 139$ brand new. I love this kind of detail. Pure class.
You truly know your instruments if you noticed that. Salute to this comment
Sign of a true musician. It’s not about the tool, but how you can use it!👌🏽
What's that, Harley Benton?
@@Feri_Ardiansyahthe brand is SX
Pretty sure I heard that the guitar player changed out the pickups, but still...
The drummers timing cured my arrhythmia
A most excellent response.
That's so funny.
SAME SAME
DUDEEEE 🤣🤣🤣
Time is a construct, and this drummer constructed it.
yo rhett
lol
Ayyy whassup my guitar slingin' G from Atlanta
:}
:3
They're all incredibly talented but that drummer is a GOD. They calibrate metronomes by him.
0:01 ‐ Maria También 3:17 ‐ August 10 7:47 - White Gloves
Thank you!
Thanks!
Am I the only one who comes here once a month for fresh jokes about the drummer?
Ha...nope, you're not!!!
On the 0 day God created The Drummer so She knew EXACTLY what time it is.
No XD
i came every 3 days cause that's when i had my college homework and i cant do my homework without this
When the Atomic Clock loses it's measure, it calls DJ.
Coolest band I've seen in a long time. That drummer: looks likes he's thinking about a cure for cancer and just does this to relax.
😂😂😂😂😂😂
Hahaha.
ahahah
hahahaaahahh so good
😂 cueeeek
The drummer is so on point he tells his watch what time it is!!
And this, is how I discovered Khurangbin ❤
Same ❤
Me2
Ditto...❤️
They say time heals all wounds.. but that drummer will have you feeling like you were never hurt to begin with.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Troof
This comment 💛 aint that lovely
WOOW such a beautiful comment!! :o
Read it literally for a minute
Laura's hip movements are crucial to their music
YES !!!! I call it the Laura Lee dip
Intoxicating for certain
I bet shes just as tasty as her basslines. Im in love!
@@maseonthebass 🤨
Mebbe
congrats to the team that does the broadcast mixes for tinydesk - legit some of the best sound quality I've ever heard on a live show
Seen them twice now, this is their sound quality all the time 😊
True, most of the tiny desk shows sound on point
First time hearing this beautiful band!!! This is 5 years ago?!!?! Crazy, but I will now enjoy! I hope I can hear them live soon!
Me and you both. Saw it on a IG reel and had to go find them. Simply amazing.
Insta reel is exactly why I’m here
Same
me three
Their ‘Hip Hop Medley’ that they perform live (and several versions of it over the years) On KZhead - just amazing!
The legend says that just after giving birth to the drummer his mother asked him what time it was
This made me laugh. Loudly.
awesome social media marketing comment
JajajajajajajJa
😂
More like, the moment the drummer was born he told the doctor his exact time of birth
Drummer's so on point he cured my arrhythmia.
Wow!!! RiftSketch creator's commenting here!! LOL 🤩 I research your work for my PhD studies. Your work is ART! All the best! Much love from Brazil.
@@jabahpureza Woah, I'm honored, haha! Thanks for the message :)
I love that this comment has 808 likes. Lets keep it that way
so good
Legend has it that every year or so, Greenwich checks in with this drummer to check their accuracy. A few years ago their computers glitched for 1/1000th of a second. He called them the day afterwards and they promptly apologized and corrected the world's time.
I played with this band at a club show back in like 2016, they were backstage arguing with the drummer because he wouldn't wear a wig. They had this vision for matching haircuts across all the members. It got really tense, but I guess the drummer didn't back down.
My man woulda looked like Thulsa Doom
"Maybe I'm wrong on this one, but for me, the beast does not include selling out." - Wayne Campbell
This confused me as there now is a band called Thulsa Doom and it's not even bad
Glad for that! The shabby chic look just wouldn’t suit the dude
Is their hair real? Is this story true?
Laura = Space DJ = Time Mark = Continuum
NOICE
@@hayleyb467 NOICE!
Mark = Energy In the musical universe, matter doesn’t exist.
woah
Now, here's a clever comment that transcends and includes all the praise and statements made by others. Well done, my extraterrestrial friend!
it's three years later drummer comments, they still flow just as things should be
i always check in every few months for the drummer comments.
@@rupertpupkin4348 yup, doing my quarterly check-in now xD
he rule the time
@@zupra5638 yeah he do 😉
nice haiku
Everybody talks about the drummer and he’s great but it’s also that bass feel. ❤️🔥
Laura Leezy is unique! I hope this band lasts for like 100 years because I haven't watched them live yet
My dad used to play this video all the time and hearing it now years later is just perfection
Your Dad is awesome!
After listening to this for the 7th time, I've decided to listen again.
Steve B agreed
to steal a quote: i came for the bangs, stayed for the guitar, and came back for the drums.
Same.
😂😂😂
You win the comments!
From time to time, I come back here to relisten them, but more importantly I come back here to reread the comments about the drummer.
Every other month or so I visit. Now we can see this band live in 2021...I really should see about tickets.
The drummer belongs to another world named Paradise of Soul
Same here.
seriously ... metronome makers contract to this guy for their base line modeling ....
DJ would appreciate if instead of using the vague "from time to time" you would properly specify the time interval (I guess he prefers the value in ms)
They are so freaking TIGHT... tiny desk is a national treasure, thanks!
Heard it last night coincidentally on some random IG clip. Since then that ‘August 10’ is on repeat. It’s like my brain melts and rebuilds in a different form each time I listen to it.
Everyone keeps talking about the drummer, but the piano player is pretty good as well.
😂
Dude...I totally LOL
🤣🤣🤣
🤣
Ya. The saxaphone sounds great too.
You’d think the drummer was bored, but he’s not. He’s just in deep. Deep deep deep deep in the groove...
He likes drummin' cuz it gives him time to think
one would think he's drummin but he's just there to control the situation
Trance state.
Deep pocket
100%
I’m late to the party but I’m here now !!!!
So happy to see Nigel Tufnel’s son carrying on the music legacy 🥹
The drummer is the primary reference signal used by NIST to synchronize the atomic clock.
❤❤❤❤
No that's Gene Hoglan
@@Andy666TheBeast I thought it was Tomas Haake
Finally someone gets it
hmbpnz he is doing his job. keeping time. that is what drummers do.
You know what impresses me most? A band that can play quiet and still groove...!
Yessir! I admire restraint.
Amen
definitely
What a super bassist. That funky groove that not everyone will ever have.
The drummer is DJ Johnson, and in case you didn't already know this, time, as a fundamental operating law of the universe was created along with the entirety of existence itself, merely as a means to have something to explain his impeccable timing.
Wow, all these comments and nobody has mentioned how great the drummer is!!
there's a drummer?
What drummer?
I love how at 04:14 the drummer seems to stare into our souls. Right there, just above the pause button.
@@AshleyPomeroy 😂😂😂😂
Many have lol
the drummer is probably playing chess in his head against himself
lol
The drums gambit
according to the look on his face, he is probably losing
@@deltalima9640 learn english
@@smokingterd53 learn some other language than english :D
I have never seen musicians play so relaxed live.
Making the divine and intricate look and sound so effortlessly beautiful. Also, the drummer's timing has perfectly synchronized my schedule and realigned my spine.
The US Department of Defense has an atomic Master Clock to which they standardise and benchmark all time and frequency measurements used by the US military. Normally they keep him under high security at the U.S. Naval Observatory but sometimes they let him play with Khruangbin
i snoped this and it checks out
I don't get why there are so many comments about this. I mean yeah, the drummer is very good at keeping the tempo, but at its core that's the primary function of drums. There are many bands which have very good drummers at keeping the tempo but you don't see the comments full of people acknowledging it.
@@aldor159 you'd have to know how to count em to know why he gets spoke on above everyone else!
Aldo Bonino Have you watched the movie 'Whiplash'?
@@aldor159 like all aspects in life... flawless timing is a rare commodity in the music industry... have you ever played in a band before?
I came for the drummer comments and y’all didn’t disappoint
same dude
Not even a slight bit🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Come back!!! It’s still going
I absolutely love Laura Lee´s bass lines and the way in which she moves the music on and on and on...
dog what gem did i just stumble into. My life has been miserable for the longest time and now I magically find some of the best music ive ever heard? Omen of the future perhaps?
"The Universe Smiles Upon You"
If you allow it to be! :)
There’s a TARANTINO movie just waiting for them.
@Norm Macdonald Show You mean defuncts, right ?
Was thinking the same thing they fit perfect with his movies
i was thinking that literally
Exactly
Uptown Saturday Night with Kevin Hart & Chadwick Boseman
This drummer is time itself.
🤣🤣🤣🤣
His kids call him, “Father Time.”
This timer is drum itself.
Found this tiny desk by accident while working and i had to stop what I was doing to just close my eyes and listen. Sublime!
I am a few years late to the party , it's almost as if time doesn't exist . Super blessed to be hearing these beautiful tunes, much needed indeed .
Drummer is so on point he made you show up exactly when you were supposed to.
My dude playing rhythm and lead at the same time what a legend
i swore i could hear three guitars...
It is siiiiiick
Yeah, love the guitar work.
So clean. And killer tone.
Mark Speer is next level, no doubt
its good to see Cleopatra playing bass instead of ruling Egypt
she can rule over all the symps in Megypt any day, gnome sane
Shih 🤣
Also nice from Jesus to accompany her
I see Mr T has got a hair cut
Bold of you to assume she's not multitasking
Don't you guys pass on the guitarist. He is godly fast, and on the pedal syncing it all. If you ever used to play, tried learning how to play guitar, or just looked into starting, you would know he is insanely good at it. Also cheers for swinging the tunes from West to middle-east just like that. That's very cool imho. Khruangbin is on a different level altogether!
This won’t be your last time watching this video.
Ikr
If you wanna learn more about the drummer, Stephen Hawking's brief history of him is a great place to start.
underrated comment
@@Lemonickous They may have heard of him but most likely not read his books or not understand in the least what he was talking about. I can see professor Hawking bobbing his head to this band fore he was a groovy physicist.
ok... got to here... this might be the best comment !!!
Nice. That's a new one.
Brother …. YOU made me laugh so hard that I was crying. Your comment is gold and brilliant. Made my day
The guitarrist has a completely different style I`ve never seen before and using all manner of techniques already known but no pick he creates unique soundscapes backed by a supermodel bassist who lays down a great groove and a drummer whose timing would put an atomic clock to shame.
He has a lot of Spanish and Thai influence. There is a really good video on youtube where he explains a lot of his influences. A lot of 70s funk and jazz guitarists from Asia and around the world. He is amazing and very under rated.
Prefect description of Khruangbin.
A lot african influece actually. If you like this check out saharan blues and stuff from congo/ghana. Its also has a very similar feel. Thats its familiar but also fresh at the same time. Music unites the world.
Mark KNOPFLER style...
Yes He does . When I first watched him play ,I would have bet money that he guitar sounds we were hearing were coming from another guitar playing with him , beside the Bass He makes it look effortless as does Mark knopfler. They both play by pickin strings like a Banjo Player would IMO. You can see many differentfingers stroking the strings , if you watch closely . Amazing
This is the hardest intro to any Tiny desk episode! 🔥🧨❤🔥🔥🔥🧯🚒🔥
Just back for my yearly watch of this video to sync up my watch
Drummer takes his hands away and the sticks keep going
Love the three fun, Jazzy with a little funk. See you soon...😉
miserave miserengue
Atoms listen to the drummer to know when it's time to half-life.
Best comment of the day!
hahahahahahahhaha you made my evening!!
Technetium 99m?
somebody knows, their pharmacology
69th like😎
I love how chilled they are. No need for any theatrics, just sweet sweet music.
Yo! This live version of "White Gloves" with DJ playing the piano is probably the best performance of this song. EXCELLENT!!!!
Yeah he adds so much here. Just some respectful restrained playing.
These are the fleeting sounds I hear when I stare into the refrigerator wondering why I just opened it.
HAHA, the subliminal sounds of hunger, confusion, and love.
time warps of a human existence
This comment. This is it.
Well said. This comment is spot on. Once I read it, I couldn't help but picture myself doing the same, and all I could think was: yes, it's true.
im in love with this comment
Imagine the drummer with the same hairstyle as them.
I totally thought the same thing 😂😂
I like his wig the best.
You funny♡
HAHAHA!! What a hilarious mental image you gave me! 😂
They couldn't afford a third wig?
I legit thought that I was listening to some undiscovered Soul Funk Phenom from the early 70's when I first heard these guys. The drummer literally sent me back in time.
DJ on the piano sounds as precise and beautiful as on the drums!
at 2:23 the bassist stops and looks at the drummer for the guitarist... when they start up again, it is perfect timing... this group doesn't just have skill. they have chemistry.
That smirk he gives her afterwards 😁
Laura Lee said in a podcast that she always felt insecure because Marc and DJ have more experience due to her learning bass as an adult. I am so impressed on how far she has come from when this performance first aired. I was blessed to see them In Houston last night and she is just awesome on that bass!
@@naomig.2553 I’m a few months into learning as an adult, Laura and others are solid inspirations for those (like me) who didn’t grow up with music theory and band and tutors as kids
@@atj22 That's awesome! Same here. I first discovered them when I came across their tiny desk performance and thought, wow those bass lines jam. I got me a small bass and began learning. Laura Lee was definitely the inspiration why I got a bass and wanted to learn. I was fortunate enough that my mom was finally able to afford guitar lessons when I was 16 but I too didn't have much access to instruments before hand. So, knowing it's possible to still be good at it as an adult is refreshing. Kim Deal is another inspiration. Glad you're enjoying learning bass! 😊
@@naomig.2553 some are just natural if you really “love” it. They are many who want to learn just to learn and put no effort. The one who loves will perfect it and still not feel happy about it. Those who really have a passion for it learn faster. I would say they even have a metronome built in already. For regular people just keeping up with the metronome is difficult. You can be excellent at anything you put your mind to, just gotta put in the hours.
Little know fact about the percussionist, Donald Ray "DJ" Johnson Jr: "DJ" is short for "Drumming Jedi". After the terrible purge of the Jedis and the fall of the republic, DJ hid on Tatooine, abandoning his light saber for a set of drums and a gig at Mos Eisley's Cantina. The guitarist and bass player are his padwan, being trained in the ways of the force.
This is true. I heard DJ trained under his master, Bass Windu
May the force be with him.
@@ChrisDutch Yes, and may the farce be with you.
salute my man, his other venture being beanz n kornbread, the man is NICE on the drums
I once heard that "DJ" was in a drum battle with Chuck Norris. Chuck Norris can now speak Braille.
This band lives in a place I like to call "in the pocket." It's the sound cool makes when it goes by.
It’s taken me till end of 2023 to find these guys….wow! Amazing stuff 👍
you've got a great beginning to 2024 ahead, discovering all of their music
Oh yes!
best comment section I've come across in quite some time.
haha true story
This band is pure joy and the comment sections is best on youtube
Definately! It even gives me an urge to start with radio again with a special feature on them, mentioning the comments about the drummer.
try earl sweatshirt-east next time,and you will change your mind
@@goodtasteofmusicclub8438 Haha. Thanks. Quite on point.
This is badass. I like the minimalist approach. One snare, a hi-hat, bass drum, and no smile because that's extra.
You forgot voices, piano, and most important, cowbell!
@@thefunkdroid2777 Well that's a given. :)
He is a very serious about his drumming
Discovered this band today and after such a long time I found music that I want to keep
Time waits for this man.
Looks like a band in an old Scooby Doo episode.
Love this comment!😂
I was thinking two Joey Ramones and a drummer
WHY IS THIS SO ACCURATE AHDBAHBDSA
You've put exactly into words what I thought! :)
Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaa🤣
Leap years are how we compensate for this drummer's day-offs
Underrated comment
hahahaha nice one
This drummer! His groove is absurd!
White Gloves is the most beautiful record ever written
when metronome needs to time something it goes to a music store and buys this drummer
Kako popraviti read the last line slowly
😆🔥
@@8chk92 why is he soulless?!? he is just really good. So clean and consistent...so mellow.
@@8chk92 k
I couldn't press the like button hard enough and now there's a big hole in my phone. Best comment of all time.
The more I see DJ drumming the more I think that man has some sort of cosmic awareness, like he’s fully aware of the position of every planet and star and knows exactly where everything is at any given second
On the level that I am currently experiencing occupancy, this is perfect.
😂😂😂 Bro ain’t there, but he’s there if you get me
OK this comment denies the existence of the Uncertainty principle...
@@seventhson4412 ‘is the cat dead or alive or both? No he’s drumming perfectly
@@seventhson4412 I know that’s not Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle but I thought it was funny haha
Still to this day my favorite Tiny Desk ever.