[ATTENDED: May 17, 2018] DJ Jester
I was pretty excited to experience Kid Koala’s Vinyl Vaudeville: Floor Kids Edition, even if I didn’t really know what I was going to experience.
The traffic and parking situation was terrible around Johnny Brenda’s and I was sure that I missed the opener, DJ Jester. He was supposed to go on at 8, and I didn’t get into the club until about 8:45.
Well, imagine my surprise to discover that he had not even gone on yet.
Kid Koala came out and told us that DJ Jester was the DJ at his little brother’s wedding and after that night, Koala knew that he’d have to bring this Texas-based DJ along on an opening slot.
So DJ Jester got behind the turntables and basically DJ’d a 45 minute set of music.
I’ve never seen a DJ as an act before, so I didn’t really know what to expect. But it was more or less like he was DJing a party–he had two turntables, a laptop and stack of vinyl.
What sets a DJ apart is of course the kind of music they play. He opened with an instrumental mix of Huey Lewis’ “The Power of Love,” which seemed odd, but when he then played Public Enemy’s “Bring Tha Noise” over it perfectly, I knew we’d be in for something interesting.
And for the most part it was. There were no more clever juxtapositions of songs like that. From then on it was mostly just interesting songs faded in an out.
His set was 45 minute and no one was dancing so it was kind of a weird experience.
He played a good selection of strange music. Like the Michael Jackson Pepsi Generation version of “Billie Jean” which was surreal to hear, or “All My Exes Live in Texas.” Or appealing to a Philly crowd, he played The Dead Milkmen (but he knew all the words so it was clearly in his rotation). He played the song Right Wing Piegons
The man in the White House who just don’t care
He starves little kids and he dyes his hair
Now what could make him think that way?
What could make him act that way?
He’s just a right-wing pigeon from outer space
Sent here to destroy the human race
He don’t give a damn about you or me
He just buys guns and watches TV, go!
I was especially thrilled when he played the Broad City theme, which I didn’t know was a song composed for the show (and there is a full version of it).
If there had been people dancing it might have been more fun, but 45 minutes was a bit too long. Some of the songs he let play too long as well, given the crowd. But he was fun and he threw whoopie cushions with his face on them into the crowd, so he wins extra points for that!
I’ll bet he’d be awesome at a wedding.
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