FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT
“SCRATCHMASTER GENERAL” KID KOALA

February 15, 2019 (originally posted July 31, 2017) | by Ross Eustis

Kid Koala at SFJAZZ (Photo by Feli Gutierres)

Eric San, better known as his stage name Kid Koala, is a highly influential and prolific Canadian DJ, turntablist and musician. Here's five things to know about Kid Koala before his live adapted graphic novel Nufonia Must Fall comes to SFJAZZ on February 7-10, featuring live Puppet Theater and video projection with an ensemble of strings, piano, and electronic instruments by Eric himself.

1. Eric San popularized a melodic method of turntabling, by taking a single note and dragging it under the needle at different speeds to change the pitch. It's on full display on his chopped up version of "Basin Street Blues."
2. "Skiznod the Boy Wonder" is Kid Koala's stage name as 1/3 of the alternative hip hop trio Deltron 3030, alongside producer Dan the Automator ("The Cantankerous Captain Aptos") and rapper Del the Funky Homosapien("Deltron Zero").
3. A mainstay of the highly respected London-based independent record label Ninja Tune, Kid Koala's released a half dozen albums over the past two decades, including the jazz-sample-heavy Some of My Best Friends Are DJs.
4. His Nufonia Must Fall Live premiered at Toronto's Luminato Festival in 2014. Directed by K.K. Barrett (Oscar-nominated for Her), the live adaptation of Kid Koala's graphic novel unfolds in real-time, with multiple cameras filming miniature stages and a cast of robot puppets. Kid Koala provides live scoring on piano and turntables, joined by a String Quartet.
5. "Was he slow?" Kid Koala called the "secret weapon" of Baby Driver for his remix anthem featured in the movie.