The Audio Perv

By Megan Matuzak

The Echo was filled with eager, wide-eyed scensters, Juno fans, and rowdy children this past Friday night. Kimya Dawson, who celebrated her birthday the day before, sported a pair of pink socks decorated with mustaches and her trustee guitar, inscribed with sharpie from fans of the past.

A young family of six traveled from Tucson, Arizona for Kimya’s LA performance. Kimya spent the first half of the show serenading the three little boys and their older sister, who gleefully requested most of her catalog.

“Alphabutts”, Kimya’s first children album, includes a song, also titled “Alphabutts”, which enlists the help of the alphabet to organize different kinds of farts. All the fart talk had the small children and the adult crowd cooing with delight and innocent laughter. Kimya also sang on a catchy little tune that her daughter, Panda, wrote about a Mayor and Bear who go to a fair a cappella.

In lieu of an album due in spring, Aesop Rock member, Ian Matthias Bavitz, joined Kimya on stage after the children went to play with Panda, who has been traveling with her “road warrior” mom. The duo performed a couple songs that fans of both artists will squeal with excitement and anticipation until their collaborative album drops.

To celebrate Kimya Dawson’s birthday, Bavitz invited Your Broken Heart Singer, Clyde Petersen, onto the stage to sing happy birthday. The crowd was able to double their birthday wishes when Panda hopped on stage to sing happy birthday to her mother. Just for that Friday night at The Echo, Kimya’s music and performance was that much sweeter.

All photos courtesy of Megan Matuzak