Monday Live: Khruangbin + Colin Stetson Michelberger Music Aftershow

Oh man… the first musical experience in our hotel following the pure magic wonder of Michelberger Music. Still impossible to find words, and even more impossible to envision regular shows in our lobby. LUCKILY…. Colin hit us up. He would have been part of the festival if he wasn’t already booked for a gig on the same weekend in New York. He almost flew in for a couple of hours. The same goes for Khruangbin. Now they are here a little delayed, but just in time for some Monday night Michelberger Music Magic.

Khruangbin will kick things off, taking us to their world of 60s Thai funk-influenced surf psych cool. The three-piece band made up of Laura Lee (Bass), Mark Speer (Guitar) and Donald Johnson – AKA D.J. (Drums) got their start in a barn in Burton, a small town about an hour and a half west of Houston, Texas. Khruangbin literally translated as ‘engine fly’ – or aeroplane. It’s a homage to the Thai rock and funk that inspired the formation of the band. Their mostly instrumental sound has been described as one that fuzzes, buzzes and floats like smoke, and ‘the kind of music that Tarantino builds whole movies around’. Here is the video of A Calf Born in Winter, their song that first turned heads back in 2014.

We finally met Colin for the first time in Eaux Claire this summer, where he played with his super super mad band Ex Eye. He also happens to be the husband of our friend Sarah Neufeld, who’s performed at the hotel a couple of times. 

Originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan but now based in Montreal, Colin is one of those musicians whose instrument seems a natural extension of his body. He primarily plays bass and alto saxophones, producing a sound that goes beyond the genre. He draws on influences as far ranging as jazz, metal, pop, soul, drone, industrial, minimalism, electro-acoustic and modern contemporary to create a very unique and personal voice. His incredible physical engagement with his instruments produces a polyphonic sound created without looping/layering or multi-track/overdubs technology. Instead, he relies on his technical prowess, incredible circular breathing techniques and some strategically placed microphones on his instrument. This clip below demonstrates nicely what we’re talking about…

Things get going from 19:00, with showtime at 20:00. Feel warmly invited.