In university I was in a student production of the musical Hair; a hippie time capsule which, as a musical, is probably far more significant than good.
There are some classic 60s songs in the soundtrack – “Age of Aquarius” and “Let the Sunshine In” for example – but there isn’t much of a story, and I imagine our particular production of it was far more enjoyable to perform than it was to watch.
But anyway: the relevant thing here is that as part of my costume I was asked to wear a wig to make me look more, y’know, like a hippie. Whether this actually worked is debatable. Some friends remarked that it made me look more like Jennifer Aniston than a hippie, and looking at the photos (no, you may not see) I think they have a point.
But from another point of view the wig worked very well, in that I found it much easier to get into character with it on. It was like a security blanket that I got to wear on my head.
Two of Khruangbin’s three members wear long black wigs for performances, and I think they might agree with my security blanket feeling. Their wigs are much less Rachel-from-Friends than mine was; they’re more in the neighbourhood of Uma Thurman’s character from Pulp Fiction. Much cooler.
Bassist Laura Lee said that despite being a touring band for the better part of a decade, she still finds performing in front of large crowds a bit intimidating, and that the wigs help. She also seems to like getting into character: she said in an interview that “Part of the goal with the wigs was so that we could be recognizable one way on stage and then unrecognizable off stage.”
So even though some of my friends (and, fun fact, also my mother) may have laughed at my character-enhancing wig, I can rest assured that fellow artists see the value of performance hairpieces.
What makes this a beautiful song:
1. For a three-piece act, Khruangbin produce surprisingly expansive soundscapes. It begins with the loop in the background and continues through the big reverb on the guitar.
2. With the quietly insistent percussion and uncomplicated bass line, it gives the feeling of calm after a storm, like a bar closing up for the night.
3. This doesn’t technically have anything to do with the song in and of itself, but this is the fifth song featured on this blog that can be found on the compilation album “Late Night Tales – Bonobo.” I’m not doing it on purpose; that’s just a really good compilation that you should probably check out.
Recommended listening activity:
Running your hand through hair that isn’t there.