I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK: THE SLEW “100%” (2009).

The Slew is the latest band created by DJ Kid Koala. Koala is a fantastic turntablist, and this group uses his scratching and sampling to excellent effect.  The lineup includes drums, bass, keyboards and six turntables!

It’s an insane hodge-podge of music.  And it’s very fun.  I’ve no idea how many samples are in here (James Brown seems to be all over the song) or even if any of the “riffs” in the song are original or from other records, but I enjoyed this very much.

I’ve enjoyed just about everything Kid Koala has done, and this is no exception.  I’m glad to see he’s still being so creative.

There are three five tracks available on CBC Radio 3.  And they’re all fun.

[READ: June 14, 2010] “Riff-Raff”

The protagonist of this story is a nineteen year old girl from Montreal.  She is in a horrible relationship with a boy named Leroy.  But near the end of her first year at McGill, she meets an American boy.  They hang out pretty steadily for a few weeks and, when school ends, he invites her to visit him in New Mexico.

There’s so many places this story could have gone.  I guessed a number of them, but I never would have guessed the direction it went.She exchanges $100 Canadian for $80 US and takes a bus to New Mexico.  But long before she gets to New Mexico, she is abused, mistreated, mocked and, eventually given solace.  It is an amazing ride.  We feel indignation for her, we want to stand up for her and (if you are American) you want to defend Americans, that we’re not all like that. But by the end of the story, everything has changed, and I found myself really enjoying this piece.

I have a few ideas about what it says about being a Canadian, but I’m not willing to reveal them at this juncture.

It’s available here.