Sporting a CBC hoodie in place of his ubiquitous koala costume, Canadian turntablist Eric San, aka Kid Koala, mixed lessons on scratching and beat juggling with an intimate DJ performance Sept. 16.
San’s class was the first partnership between Carleton and House of PainT, the annual hip-hop festival held under the Bronson St. bridge between the university and Brewer Park.
Music professor Jesse Stewart collaborated with festival organizer Rob Reid to join the school and festival, a first-time event in House of PainT’s nine-year history, which Stewart deemed “weird” considering the festival’s proximity to Carleton.
A small group of about 25 die-hard Kid Koala fans, one carrying a stuffed koala bear, watched San’s hands flit rapidly over his extensive panel of knobs and records as he went through turntable history and described his personal style. Most were close enough to see the turntablist’s hands, but a camera rigged to a projection screen ensured everyone had a clear view of the techniques and tricks that have made Kid Koala world-famous.
Everyone listened raptly, with some even taking notes, but there was no shyness in the frequent interjections with technical queries and questions about San’s work.
Nine people jumped at the chance to create a mix using just about every piece of gear in the room. Kid Koala dubbed the finished track “Brussels Sprouts” after one volunteer’s favourite vegetable, which looped through the music.
Some advice from the turntable master:
- “Be freaky about it!” Don’t be afraid to bring your own unique twist to your beats – that’s what being a DJ is all about.
- Be prepared to sacrifice some social time. “Most DJs, when they’re young, don’t have any friends,” he said, since creating and mastering a track requires dedicated practice.
- Be patient. San got his musical start with classical piano, which he said “taught me I have to be patient.”
- Make the most of your machines. San showed off some of his home modifications, including office labels to mark bars on records, old sweatshirt fabric under records, and talked about taking his mom’s toaster knobs to upgrade his fader years ago.
Ashley Gaskell, an addictions counsellor with the AIDS Committee of Ottawa, and her fiancé are avid Kid Koala fans. They said they have seen him perform his Space Cadet and The Slew tours, as well as at Bluesfest.
“He works harder than any other guys we’ve seen,” Gaskell said. “It’s insane what he does.”
