After
Khruangbin
released their second album,
Con Todo el Mundo
, in early 2018, the jet-setting Texan trio's music suddenly seemed to pop up everywhere, from play lists of many stripes to hip boutiques and eateries. Their uncategorizable but easily enjoyable blend of psych, funk, dub, and myriad other styles managed to find the right audience, and they sold out concerts left and right, while vinyl collectors fiended over limited pressings of their records. Several months before their third full-length appeared in 2020, they collaborated with retro-soul troubadour
Leon Bridges
on the four-song EP
Texas Sun
, their first release to feature clear, upfront singing.
Mordechai
contains vocals on nearly every song, and the group have much more to say this time around. "Time (You and I)," maybe their best song to date, reflects on a desire to build a future with someone, if only there was more time and the feeling was mutual. The sprawling disco beat and playful cadences make the song an easy party jam, but the lyrics' mixture of fantasy and invitation resonate harder than anything else they've written. Almost as affecting is "If There Is No Question," an unassuming soul groove which carries the comforting reassurance that "You're wild, but you're not crazy." "So We Don't Forget" is light, steady funk with Afro-pop guitar lines, glistening organ, and softly cooing vocals, and its mood is equal parts blissful vibing and bashful introspection. A chilled-out reggae variation titled "One to Remember" is also present, echoing the band's 2019 dub excursion
Hasta el Cielo
. Much more outgoing is "Pelota," a spicy, percussive tune filled with handclaps and exuberant Spanish-sung vocals. The band also have a bit of fun alluding to French New Wave films with the seductive dialogue of "Connaissais de Face."
's music can still work as an ebullient, sun-baked soundtrack to daily activities, social gatherings, or cross-country road trips, but their songs have gotten more expressive and soul-searching, and
rewards closer listening more than any of their previous recordings. ~ Paul Simpson