12 Bit Blues

12 Bit Blues
Studio album by
Kid Koala
ReleasedSeptember 17, 2012 (2012-09-17)
Length41:15
LabelNinja Tune
Kid Koala chronology
Your Mom's Favorite DJ
(2006)		 12 Bit Blues
(2012)		 Music to Draw To: Satellite
(2017)

12 Bit Blues is a studio album by Canadian DJ Kid Koala. It was released on the Ninja Tune label on September 17, 2012. It peaked at number 21 on Billboard's Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart, as well as number 6 on the Blues Albums chart.

Recording

The album was recorded on an E-mu SP-1200, a 1987 drum machine and sampler known for its use in early hip hop. On the album, Kid Koala used it to manipulate old blues recordings. In making the album, Kid Koala did not use sequencing software, choosing instead to layer tracks of scratching and cutting on top of the manipulated blues samples.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100
Review scores
SourceRating
ABC Newsfavorable
AllMusicStarStarStarStar
BBCfavorable
MSN Music (Expert Witness)A−
Nowfavorable

At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, 12 Bit Blues received an average score of 80% based on 9 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

PopMatters named it the 6th best Canadian album of 2012.

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."1 Bit Blues (10,000 Miles)"4:01
2."2 Bit Blues"3:28
3."3 Bit Blues"2:56
4."4 Bit Blues"3:54
5."5 Bit Blues"4:37
6."6 Bit Blues"4:27
7."7 Bit Blues"4:32
8."8 Bit Blues (Chicago to NY to LA)"4:10
9."9 Bit Blues"2:16
10."10 Bit Blues"2:08
11."11 Bit Blues"3:14
12."Denouement"1:37

Charts

Chart Peak
position
US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard) 21
US Blues Albums (Billboard) 6

References

  1. ↑ "12 Bit Blues by Kid Koala". Ninja Tune. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Kid Koala - Top Dance/Electronic Albums". Billboard. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  3. 1 2 "Kid Koala - Blues Albums". Billboard. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  4. 1 2 Chick, Stevie (2012). "Kid Koala 12 Bit Blues Review". BBC iPlayer. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  5. ↑ Weingarten, Christopher (September 12, 2012). "Kid Koala Breaks Down Scratch-Pop Masterwork '12 Bit Blues': Full Album Stream". Spin. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  6. 1 2 Anderson, Rick. "12 Bit Blues - Kid Koala". AllMusic. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  7. 1 2 "12 Bit Blues by Kid Koala". Metacritic. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  8. ↑ Raible, Allan (September 20, 2012). "Review: Kid Koala's '12 Bit Blues'". ABC News. Archived from the original on August 26, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  9. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "Consumer Guide: Kid Koala". MSN Music. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  10. ↑ Boles, Benjamin (November 29, 2012). "Kid Koala - 12 Bit Blues". Now. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  11. ↑ Henderson, Stuart (December 4, 2012). "The Best Canadian Albums of 2012". PopMatters. Retrieved January 24, 2018.