Musical Teleportation in Toronto with Khruangbin
Photo: Steve St. Jean
It was night three of Khruangbin’s sold-out A La Sala tour at Toronto’s History. Despite the back-to-back performances, energy was pulsing through the already packed venue as openers John Carroll Kirby and Logan Hone commanded the crowd with their sound and impressive dance moves a-la-flute. This was my first time experiencing them, and you best believe I’ve been listening to them on repeat since Sunday night.
Their captivating opening performance took me back to the first time I saw Khruangbin in 2016 when they were the openers for Father John Mistry. We arrived at The Roundhouse in London, England, a few hours after landing, and the jet lag was kicking in big time. But with a proper British pint in hand, I watched Khruangbin – a band I didn’t know until that moment – take the stage, and they instantly won me over with their sound and captivatingly chill stage presence. They transported me and the audience into a psychedelic, surf-rock, atmospheric, musical trance. And I’ve been hooked ever since. The only difference between these two shows was the mass number of people there to see them this time around, minus the jet lag. Lucky for me, when Khruangbin took to the stage, the same feeling swept over me and the entire crowd.
The genre-bending instrumental trio from Houston, Texas, consisting of Laura Lee on bass, Mark Speer on guitar, and Donald Johnson on drums, doesn’t waste time with talk. Instead, they get straight to the goods. They opened with “Fifteen Fifty-Three” off their latest album, A La Sala and continued on to play the album in full for their first set. With the crowd dancing, swaying, and nodding along to each track, I could tell they were all caught up in the magic of the night. In the middle, the show transitioned to the second set with projections and audio of a thunderstorm that transformed the Toronto venue into an impressively intimate space, keeping us all safe from the storm while reminding us that we were all in this moment – this experience – together. The flow of the evening remained even with some medical emergencies that required the show to pause. The second act included Khruangbin staples like “Two Fish and an Elephant” and “People Everywhere (Still Alive)” off of The Universe Smiles upon You. The encore put a perfect vibey wrapper on the night with “So We Won’t Forget” (Mordechai).
If you hate Ticketmaster and couldn’t get tickets, or just want to relive the night beyond your Instagram stories, check out our concert photos below. While you’re at it, why not listen to one of Khruangbin’s live albums, including one recorded from Toronto’s RBC Echo Beach. It’s not as good as the real thing, but hopefully, it can help fill the void until they return.
CONCERT PHOTOS
KHRUANGBIN
Words by: Karlie Hopf
Photography: Steve St. Jean
