Kid Koala has been scratching for twenty years. A vinyl purist from Montreal who also creates graphic novels, he got his nickname from a soda his Mom used to buy. During his set at the Nines Festival, he said that one of the first pieces he scratched was based on one of his favorite musicians of all time, Louis Armstrong.
He performed “Drunk Trumpet” using only one of the three turntables and a small mixing board. He did a great rendition of “Moon River” and “Yo, Gabba, Gabba” then donned his Koala bear suit, saying that he had lost a bet and had to wear it for the next 100 concerts. On “Open Closed,” he asked if we were ready to channel our inner four year old, and that it was his daughter’s favorite song.
He set it up quickly using all three turntables and the mixing board with speed and accuracy, then mouthed the words of the recorded woman’s voice hopping up and down in his Koala bear suit with his ears flapping.
The audience went mad with giggles and hoots and participated by raising their hands in the air and stretching their fingers wide on “open” then pulling their fists in on “closed.” The real four year olds in the audience and the inner four year olds had a blast, especially when Kid Koala decided to climb down into the audience.