Khruangbin and Vieux Farka Toure at Prospect Park: Concert Review

As New York discovered in no uncertain terms last summer when the star-studded “We Love NYC” party in Central Park was suddenly called off less than halfway before it ended, the threat of lightning is no joke when it comes to outdoor events. And though thunderclouds and some dangerous flashes of lightning served as the backdrop to Khruangbin and Vieux Farka Touré at BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn’s BRIC Celebrate in New York City’s Prospect Park, they passed south without a drop of rain, and the all-out concert went on without incident from Mother Nature. – except for some harsh summer humidity in New York City.

The Khruangbin, a mostly instrumental Houston trio, is as unusual as their name, and perhaps the most remarkable part of the concert is the size of the densely packed crowd – not many bands like them are famous enough to sell Radio City Music Hall in New York which It has 6,000 seats, which they did earlier this year. While they were originally labeled (widely) as alternative act and quickly embraced by Pitchfork, the easy groove of their music – highlighted by Mark Speer’s stunning guitar playing – and a series of high-profile festival appearances soon brought them a huge following with the band’s crowd. . Both fans were in power at this concert and happily swayed on the group’s main ensemble, which drew heavily from their two most recent albums, 2018’s “Con Todo el Mundo” and 2020’s “Mordechai” (excluding selections from their two most recent releases. , pair of EPs with Leon Bridges on vocals).

Unlike most instrumental rock bands, Khruangbin doesn’t move around heavily: in fact, they’re quite relaxed. Speer, undisputedly one of the best guitarists to emerge in the last decade, plays amazing melodic licks almost impromptu, often throwing his fingers on the strings and impacting the strings at the same time, while guitarists Laura Lee and Donald “DJ” Johnson squeeze out unflattering rhythms. smoothly expedited. It’s not that they Not possible Play harder or hit harder; They just don’t. Speer and Lee also know how to fill a stage, step from side to side, sometimes in a striking pose like the one pictured above while a pair of large disco balls and some vibrant lighting provide an appropriately choppy backdrop.

The group has expanded its collection of 90 minutes or more with some ambiguous nods to New York’s musical legacy, with musical snippets from Tom Tom Club’s “Genius of Love,” the often sampled Shadows song “Apache” and even the Grandmaster Flash’s message. ” They also sprayed some lower covers on messages in the group, including a clip from the 1985 Spandau Ballet song “True” (huh?) and Kool & the Gang’s “Summer Madness” (although the heat may have inspired that) .

However, the really special moment came during the debut, when the audience got a preview of the group’s upcoming collaborative album with Vieux, “Ali”. The album is a tribute to Vieux’s father Ali Varca Toure, who played a huge role in shaping the guitar-driven sound that has borne fruit with acts like Tinariwen, Mdou Moctar and of course Vieux himself. He and his three fellow musicians (bass, drums and percussion) played a loud opening group, then Vieux joined Khruangbin in the encore, a song from the album titled “Mahine Me”. He and Speer exchanged guitar licks, both blasting off at lightning speed in honor of a man whose music had a tremendous effect on both, bringing thunder to the stage while lightning, fortunately, remained south of the place.



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