Before touching the decks at Brisbane’s The Triffid (25 May) as part of his Australian tour of his newest album ‘The Mountain Will Fall’, DJ Shadow picked up a mic to speak to his fans.
The DJ spoke of loving Australia, how he hoped looming world threats won’t keep him away and playing songs from throughout his career: released and unreleased. It was a surprising start to hear from a DJ before a set, but it wasn’t the only one in a set full of surprises.
Opening was a short set from Brisbane's original DJ and member of Resin Dogs DJ Katch. Filling his slot with samples of soul horns and funk flutes, Katch really came alive when he scratched over his big-hitting beats.
DJ Shadow made sure his show was a real audio-visual feast, with crystal-clear sounds and images rivalling those on IMAX screens. Even with all the visual stimulation, it was hard to take my eyes off of him.
He’s one of the most active DJs I’ve ever seen; gliding across his gear, working the vinyl like Jimi Hendrix on ‘What Does You Soul Look Like?’ or picking up some sticks to pound electronic drums on his remix of DJ Krush’s ‘Meiso’.
After going through all of his gear to turn ‘Six Days’ into a beat assault, DJ Shadow tugged at his own shirt collar to let out the steam he’d been working up.
A range of DJ Shadow’s styles were given the live treatment. Head-nodding tracks from his debut ‘Endtroducing…’ like ‘Midnight In A Perfect World’ was given a bass boost that made my insides vibrate. A reworking of his track with UNKLE and Thom Yorke ‘Rabbit In Your Headlights’ was given a skittering breakdown that sounded like the most tuneful computer malfunction.
Introspective trip-hop tracks were matched with hip hop bangers, with raps from Q-Tip, Nas, and Run The Jewels appearing. The opening guitar lick from the Run The Jewels collaboration ‘Nobody Speak’ induced massive cheers and a rainbow of sweat as the audience bounced along.
DJ Shadow returned after a massive encore chant, rewarding with an airing of ‘Corridors’; a new track with a heavy UNKLE vibe he’d only just finished. The rest of the encore felt like an after-party, with the fuzzy bass of ‘The Number Song’ mixing with the blur of his scratching on ‘The Sideshow’ inciting full-body spasms from the crowd.
DJ Shadow’s albums aren’t exactly party albums, being made to nod along to on your earphones. But DJ Shadow showed all of his different sides, making his tracks sound completely new.
Some may say you haven’t heard DJ Shadow unless you’ve heard him on a good stereo; I say you haven’t heard him unless it’s live.
