Kid Koala

Turntablist Kid Koala Puts Away Sampler For Upcoming Ambient LP

Yehouda Silverman Leave a Comment

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Kid Koala, the revered Canadian DJ/turntablist/musician/author who was born Eric San, will set aside his explorations of samples, beats and grooves in favor of ambient music on his upcoming fifth full-length album, Music To Draw To: Satellite. The 16-track album — his first non-sample-based record — will be available January 20, 2017 on Arts & Crafts. He is joined on seven songs by Icelandic singer Emilíana Torrini.

San says the album “started as a winter time creative event. We have been hosting this event now for several years in Montreal and other cities. I would play records I enjoy drawing to, often music that was too slow or quiet to play in a dance floor situation. People are invited to come work on their own projects at the event. Over the last few winters, I started incorporating other instruments into the mix to create live ambient pieces during the night. A lot of these experiments would become templates for this recording.”

Today Kid Koala unveiled “The Observable Universe” and said there will be a series of “turntable orchestra” performances in North America where each audience member will sit at their own turntable station and play custom-cut Satellite Orchestra Tone Vinyl records and effects pedals (designed by Earthquaker Devices specially for this show) under the direction of Kid Koala.

Music To Draw To: Satellite Track Listing

  1. The Observable Universe
  2. Adrift (ft. Emilíana Torrini)
  3. Transmission 1
  4. Fallaway (ft. Emilíana Torrini)
  5. Perihelion
  6. Photons
  7. Beneath The Heat (ft. Emilíana Torrini)
  8. Novachord
  9. Transmission 2
  10. Collapser (ft. Emilíana Torrini)
  11. Transmission 3
  12. The Hubble Constant
  13. Satellite (ft. Emilíana Torrini)
  14. Apoapsis
  15. Nightfall
  16. The Darkest Day (ft. Emilíana Torrini)
  17. Epilogue
  18. Nightfall Pale Blue (ft. Emilíana Torrini)

Full Satellite Show Dates Listed Below:

January 26 – Toronto ON – The Rivoli
January 27 – Toronto ON – The Rivoli
January 28 – Toronto ON – The Rivoli
February 2 – Montreal QC – Phi Centre
February 3 – Montreal QC – Phi Centre
February 4 – Montreal QC – Phi Centre
February 12 – New York, NY – Le Poisson Rouge (2 Shows)
February 16 – Ottawa ON – National Arts Centre Fourth Stage
February 17 – Ottawa ON – National Arts Centre Fourth Stage
February 18 – Ottawa ON – National Arts Centre Fourth Stage (matinée)
February 18 – Ottawa ON – National Arts Centre Fourth Stage

Album Review: DJ Kentaro / ‘Contrast’ (Ninja Tune)

Matt Oliver Leave a Comment

★★★☆☆

A turntablist turned dubstep detontator, seduced by gigantic wobbles being able to hit the big time, DJ Kentaro’s kitchen sink mentality is a mere half-hour long, the development of stylus wrecker to Japanese exocet having him breathe fire and running the city into a fever. The cut and dice never leaves him, intelligently worked into “Crossfader” and electro-funk ease-up “Next Page,” and there’s more than enough hip-hop firepower — DJ Krush, D-Styles, Kid Koala, C2C — to bill Contrast as a purely multi-deck throwdown. “Kikkake” and “Higher” however immediately state his intentions to push the plunger down on billowing, chaos-in-Metropolis, midrange dubstep/drumstep, made for snapping stadiums into a state of smithereens. State of the art for sure, even if it’s following a fast becoming long tradition – massive sounding, but in reality engineered spotlessly.

UK mega-mouths Foreign Beggars are the perfect power boosters for “Step In”, and the same goes for ragga runners of de dance MC Zulu on “Big Timer” and Fire Ball on “Fire Is On”, turning what was already a demolition job into a game of wrecking balls playing dodgeball. You’re actually getting your money’s worth out of 30 minutes – too much more would’ve been overload, such is Kenatro’s unflinching bass/synth bloodlust that will estrange those wanting an exhibition of crabs and juggles, but will get a helluva lot more of the market onside.
File under: Drumsound &amp Bassline Smith, Pendulum, Sub Focus

Buy Kid Koala’s ’12 Bit Blues,” Get A Cardboard, Hand Powered Turntable Kit

Darren Ressler Leave a Comment

Known for his sublime beatscapes, graphic novels and comics, Canadaian turntablist Kid Koala takes his creativity to the next level with his upcoming album, 12 Bit Blues. Now get this: the album’s limited edition first run will come with a cardboard, hand powered turntable kit. Are you reading this, Gizmodo?

Equally as interesting is that Koala (a.k.a Eric San) forged all of the album’s tracks on an old school E-mu SP-1200 sampler, a production unit he fantasized about owning when he was a kid. According to Ninja Tune, “over three days he cut up and reassembled the bed tracks for 12 Bit Blues. No sequencing software was used. Using the pads on the machine and a multitrack, Eric played each part of the tracks in real time, before finally returning and adding cuts over the top.”

So it’s no surprise 12 Bit Blues apparently sounds raw and beautiful. Look for the album dropping on September 18.