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This, his third album of vinyl-anorak hijinks, ticks all the boxes we’ve come to expect from The Kid, with ‘drunk’ trumpet scratches over jazz loops, light-hearted and somewhat nerdy skits of recontextualised DJ-related movie dialogue, and a healthy dose of clattering breaks. Here we also find a beats-and-guitars thread on three ‘tests’ conducted with new rock group Slew.

The Kid prides himself less on his crossfader prowess than on his ability to tell stories using vinyl, and the ‘semi-autobiographical’ tale recounted here is woven from an unstructured yet suggestive sequence of exchanges and confessions. They tell of moments of self-doubt, shyness and youthful angst; of motherly encouragement, the transformative power of turntablism, and the lonely burden of the DJ, alone in the corner while everyone else is having fun. There’s also a rather tenuous reference to Pavlov and metronomes.

Musically, however, this album is mostly uninspiring, and doesn’t seem to fit any particular listening context. The rhythm and blues riffs of ‘Dinner At 1:00 am’ and ‘Paper Route Days’ are entertaining but not ground that Koala and others have not covered before. The unsettling 7/8 rhythm of ‘Gimme a K!’ and the irritatingly cheesy folk tootling of ‘Mosquito Vs. Waterbuffalo’ are, like the free-jazz they hark back to, almost designed to alienate the general listener.

Your Mom’s… certainly has its moments, among them the spooky experimental ambience of ‘Robo-Cookie Factory’ and the piano-led Film Noir hip-hop of ‘Things’ll Be Good Again’. And it is fun. But it’s not exactly a timeless classic.

Expect a follow-up book and puppet show. Honest.

Reviewed: Kid Koala - Your Mom’s Favourite DJ (Ninja Tune)