Unconventional yet compelling
The experimental Canadian scratch DJ, Kid Koala’s recently released album Creatures of the Late Afternoon is a chaotic aural experience that listeners cannot miss out on, because if they do, they will have missed one of Kid Koala’s most euphonious soundtracks. The album consists of 20 brain scrambling songs that have their own unorthodox yet captivating concepts. Kid Koala has made a name for himself in the electronic music industry by venturing into the realms of electronica, experimental, trip hop and more.
The opening track, “Hear Now” kicks off Creatures of the Late Afternoon with a “buckle your seatbelts and get ready for lift off” type of energy. The song begins with a loud introduction of a clunking echo that fades into a softly blaring alarm before a couple sets of brief record scratches. Almost immediately following, the sound of thunderous drum beats layered on top of a sampling of electric static gives “Hear Now” an industrial rock vibe. As the song progresses, a warped electric guitar progression is spliced into the previous verse, itching the deepest corners of listeners’ brains. Halfway through the track, the instrumentation falls silent before introducing a muffled sci-fi noise and rapidly escalated rings mixed with a steady bassline. After this short-lived solo, Kid Koala cycles back into his previous melody, but adds clips of miscellaneous recordings and scratches. To close out “Hear Now,” the musician ends on a suspenseful note leaving listeners at a standstill.
The second song on the album, “1000 Towns” features artist Coelacanth, who adds allure to the track. The song opens with various scratching noises and a fundamental drum progression before adding in a piano progression that is hard to decipher due to the distorted nature of the track. Coelacanth’s vocals sound captivating, but are difficult to understand because of the warped essence–one of the only clear phrases being, “A thousand towns,” bellowed by the featured artist. The track transports listeners back to a time when the sound of scratching records would interrupt an ongoing song, but its intentional application in Creatures of the Late Afternoon is what makes this song addictive. All of the tracks have their own unmistakable, gratifying sounds; however, the song “Rise Of The Tardigrades” is unparalleled in comparison with the other tracks.
“Rise Of The Tardigrades,” the nineteenth song on the track, starts off with an alert system sampling, warning, “Battle stations, alert,” followed by Kid Koala’s signature touch, assorted scratching noises. As the song progresses, the DJ incorporates a brooding guitar progression that sounds like it came straight out of a fight scene in an old Western film accompanied by a more heavy metal guitar melody. After the harmony begins to crescendo, samplings of distorted recordings and record scratches are layered on top of the pre-existing track. “Rise Of The Tardigrades” formulates a thrilling atmosphere for listeners, transferring them to a steampunk action movie where the characters are gearing up before the climactic showdown. This epic track showcases Kid Koala’s musical talents of instigating particular emotions by incorporating formerly-released samplings that exemplify the song’s overarching theme, but spices it up to match his edgy temperament.
All of the songs on this engrossing, multifaceted paragon of an album embody Kid Koala’s unconventional beats that abundantly grasp each of the concepts he applies to his compelling arrangements. Creatures of the Late Afternoon leaves listeners’ with an insatiable appetite, yearning for those brain-itching scratches and experimental harmonies that are unlike any other track they have listened to before.
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