KRUNJ

Words: Keeley Thompson

Images: Rachael Baskerville (@rachaelbaskerville)

A cloud of gentle authenticity floats through the room, warming every forgotten corner and under worn cushions. A lit joint balances delicately on one of those orange-glass vintage ashtrays as the sun creeps in from outside and turns the smoke into a satin illusion. Light moves around the room with a certain vibrancy and playfulness that would have you certain that a disco-ball is suspended above the group.

At least, that’s what I imagine it looks like when local Brisbane band KRUNJ, gather to create their music. A welcome enigma, the psych-jazz-soul-pop group produce music that decorates any time and space with confidence and skilful fluidity.

Born from the Brisbane jazz and psych scene, KRUNJ is the collaborative result of locals Kimberley Hanson (vocals, synth), Daniel Mahler (guitar, production), Oliver Gray (bass) and Lachlan Giddings (drums). Together, they offer a colourful and comfortable sonic landscape to explore the joys (and complexities) that humans experience both individually and as a collective.

KRUNJ ask big questions, share pleasure, and document difficulties without getting bogged-down in their own subject matter, and rather approach these topics with curiosity and calmness. Like sharing warm mulled wine on a cold night with your lover, KRUNJ is to be enjoyed without moderation.

KEELEY: Where did ‘KRUNJ’ come from?

KIM: We get asked this all the time! It took us ages to agree on a name actually, and one day OG (Oliver) came to rehearsal and told us he was learning the bass for ‘The Crunge’ by Led Zeppelin (which is a cool track by the way). We thought it would be a cool band name and went from there!

We imagine it as a kind of stank-face, but a stank-face when something’s really good. It’s a good cringe.

KEELEY: How did you all meet?

KIM: We’ve all been friends for ages. The band (Baskervillain) that Mahler and Giddings were previously in had ended and I was chatting with them about how much I missed singing and playing music.

They convinced me to join them at JMI (Jazz Music Institute) and I was like “yeah fuck it, why not”. It was that era when studying was fun and not expensive and not completely soul crushing – studying music just sounded fun!

Once we all got to JMI we met OG. I’ve always loved the bass lines that he does, and his ability to energetically and musically match vocals.

KEELEY: Did you go into KRUNJ with a vision, or did it start as a passion project?

KIM: We started as a bit of fun really and just jamming a lot, but as we progressed, we started writing a heap of music and figured why not put it out into the world.

KEELEY: You’ve got the new EP, ‘Gritty Bones’ coming out! What was the approach with the new EP, did you have any themes or ideas for it?

KIM: In comparison to the first EP, I think this one is more like a wicked teenage phase. You can definitely tell that COVID had an impact on our writing. With the title Gritty Bones, this one is a lot grittier (for lack of a better word), darker and has more to say.

The first EP has a lot more broken hearted, romantic themes because that’s where I was in my life.

The new EP is at this angry teenager phase where we talk about big things like social media, the structure of society and the negligence of people in power.

One of our songs I Know a Way Out was originally about COVID lockdowns and border closures but has since grown to become an anthem for taking a break from social media and the pressures of having an online presence.

KEELEY: It’s been a big year for KRUNJ with your music video for ‘I Know a Way Out’ having just been released! How did you go about the process of creating that?

KIM: I came up with the concept, and wanted to bring life to things that make me feel trapped. The main thing for me is my phone and social media. I constantly feel trapped in a vortex of consumption.

From there, we spoke about things that help us disconnect or escape from that feeling, and came up with some ideas. Essentially, I’m going through the online world and keep getting stuck in other people’s worlds until eventually, I find my own.

KEELEY: Do you have any ‘proudest moments’ or highlights?

KIM: Ahhh that’s hard! Because we’re so small, it’s hard to pin down one particular thing. I think the Rolling Stone feature was a particular highlight for all of us – being in Rolling Stone is pretty awesome.

Another one would be our second ever gig at Yonder Festival. That was special because it was our second gig as a band, and we all camped together. We always look back on that time really fondly. We actually had a full blanket set up at the campsite with “Kamp Krunj” written on it.

We’ve also been really lucky to play with some incredible musicians and amazing events like Brisbane Street Art Festival and Phosphor Collective.

KEELEY: Where do you find your inspiration from?

KIM: We all have such different influences and tastes, but we’ve all studied jazz so when we come together it’s always an amalgamation of our personal preferences.

We just appreciate good music! We all really love bands like Hiatus Kaiyote and those new jazz pioneers that have been paving the way for jazz in the last ten years. If we got put in that category, that’d be pretty cool.

KEELEY: Unrelated but fun question now – what’s your favourite beverage.

KIM: At the moment, it’s a Bloody Mary. There’s one place in Melbourne that does a good one and I will always get a Bloody Mary there, even if I’m not hungover.

KEELEY: What’s your favourite song recorded, and your favourite song to play live?

KIM: For me, it’s currently Gritty Bones which is coming out this week! I love that song because it has such a rolling beat to it and makes me feel things. It just hits right.

KEELEY: That’s pretty much it from me! What’s next for KRUNJ? Obviously, you’ve got the EP and the music video, is world domination next?

KIM: Yeah so our music video is out and is being premiered on Tonedeaf which is pretty darn cool. Then we release the EP on Friday the 7th of July and our headline show on the same Friday and then we might do a tour at the end of the year.

PRESAVE THE NEW EP 'GRITTY BONES' HERE

KRUNJ “GRITTY BONES” EP LAUNCH GIG TICKETS HERE

INSTAGRAM