By: C Icart, staff writer
Nearly three decades after the beginning of his career, Vancouver turntable legend, Kid Koala is releasing his ninth album. The established artist is also “a respected performer, film composer, theatre producer and visual artist.” His upcoming album is called Creatures Of The Late Afternoon and is the soundtrack to an accompanying board game about creatures coming together and using music to protect their habitat. The board game is played on the vinyl case for the album.
Kid Koala, also known as Eric San, has been honing in on his sound for years. He incorporates elements of hip-hop, blues, classical, ambient, and alternative. He is incredibly creative and the album is like “the score to an action film-inspired love story.” The second single, “Once Upon A Time In The Northeast,” has been released on January 10 and it’s an instrumental electronic track.
I don’t typically listen to electronic music so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I let myself get transported by the beat. The song was reminiscent of a western film. It is described as “a pensive and patient turntable plod, the instrumental track slowly builds from scratched textures to arid Ennio Morricone-like guitar with great canyon reverb.” It’s the perfect background track for any chill evening.
Kid Koala describes the album as “playful.” The first two singles are available to listen to now but the full album release is scheduled for April 14, 2023. The multi-talented artist also painted the art on the board game. I am looking forward to seeing how all the pieces of this album come together to tell one cohesive story through the visuals and the game.
The double album and board game are available for pre-order. Those interested in seeing Kid Koala live can attend his show with Lealani at the Biltmore Cabaret on February 9, 2023.
