Khruangbin Makes Roadrunner Boston Debut: Recap & Photos

Khruangbin pulled into Boston’s newest venue Roadrunner on their Casa Surreal Tour for the first of two sold-out nights. Roadrunner’s first concert was held on Tuesday and featured a performance by Billy Strings.

The venue holds 3,500 people, has some of the best, unobstructed sightlines in town, and the sound is crystal clear whether you’re upfront next to the stage or at the back bar on the second level. Parking in the area is easy enough with plenty of street parking and three garages right near it or you can take mass transit that drops you off right next to it. It’s a truly impressive addition to the city that was very much needed.

The three-week spring tour the band is currently on is about to wrap up and they are as tight as they have ever been. There’s an ease and fluidity to their set that some other bands just don’t have.

It all starts with drummer Donald “DJ” Johnson who is a master of sitting in the pocket and being a metronome. You will never see him be flashy but the way he keeps a perfect beat, hitting the same mark on the drum every time, is one of the most impressive things you can see live. It may not be the first thing you think of with the band, but anyone else in that seat would change the entire landscape of the music.

We then have the one-two punch of bassist Laura Lee and guitarist Mark Speer. Both move about the stage right in time with the slow funky music that comes from their instruments, almost as if they aren’t controlling the music, but the music is controlling them.

The night mostly focused on material from their last two albums, Mordechai and Con Todo el Mundo, supplying eight of the 14 songs on the setlist. One of the most impressive feats was near the end of the set they launched into a medley that began with David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance” and segued into “Coffin Nails” by MF Doom and continued to segue perfectly between parts of several more songs with the crowd singing the words and losing their minds when each song’s well-known riff blasted through the venue. This segment works because the three of them ooze a cool factor that lets the audience know they aren’t taking these songs out for cheap pops, but that this is the music they listen to and are influenced by and feel the need to pay homage.

Coming back out for the encore, Lee changed her outfit and the band blasted through three more songs, ending on “People Everywhere” with the giant disco balls lighting up the building and a quick thank you from the band and a promise to see them tomorrow night.

Opening the night was Nubya Garcia who put on a jazz clinic for the audience. What was great to see is how big of a reaction she got during her set. She is a perfect opener for them as her music sets the mood and gets everyone in the mindset that it’s while it’s going to be a chill night, your body still needs to be ready to dance up a storm. Garcia is a must-see act if she is playing anywhere near you.

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Setlist

Source: JamBase.com