article

Josh Davis, aka DJ Shadow, (born January 1, 1973 in Davis, California) is a turntablist musician.

Biography

DJ Shadow spent his teenage years in Davis, California and was a DJ at the community radio station KDVS. During his time as a disc jockey, DJ Shadow was significant in developing the experimental hip hop style associated with the California-based Solesides record label. His early singles for the label, including In/Flux and Lost and Found (S.F.L.), were genre-bending works of art merging elements of funk, rock, hip hop, ambient, jazz, soul, and used-bin found records. DJ Shadow is often cited as a leading creator of trip-hop, though this is a label he strongly contests.

Although he previously released a couple of original works (during 1991-1992 for Hollywood Records) by the time Mo' Wax's James Lavelle contacted him about releasing In/Flux on the fledgling imprint, it wasn't until his distribution association with Mo' Wax that his sound began to mature and cohere.

Shadow's first full-length work, Endtroducing....., was released in late 1996 to immense critical acclaim. Endtroducing made the Guinness World Records book for "First Completely Sampled Album" in 2001. Preemptive Strike, a compilation of early singles, followed in early 1998. Later that year, Shadow produced tracks for Psyence Fiction, the debut album by U.N.K.L.E., a long-time Mo' Wax production team that gained superstar guests including Ian Brown, Thom Yorke (of Radiohead), Richard Ashcroft (of The Verve), Mike D (of the Beastie Boys) and others. His next project came in 1999, with the transformation of Solesides into a new label, Quannum Projects. Nearly six years after his debut production album, his second album, The Private Press, was released in June 2002. In the same year, the movie Scratch (2001, Doug Pray) was released to DVD with DJ Shadow appearing several times throughout the movie. A video for his track "Six Days" was also released in 2002, directed by Wong Kar-Wai.

The documentary films Dark Days and Wisconsin Death Trip feature music from DJ Shadow.

DJ Shadow has also collaborated with fellow hip-hop DJ Cut Chemist. Together they have created two popular mixtapes entitled Brainfreeze and Product Placement. These mixes fuse jazz, funk, and soul in the framework of a cohesive concept. Shadow himself has stated on his website that if you own either of these on vinyl you are the owner of a bootleg, as they were only ever released on CD and distributed to a selection of outlets for sale.

In the year 2004, Shadow's feature length DVD, In Tune and On Time was released. The DVD features a live performance in London, emphasizing intricate visuals.

In 2005, Mo' Wax released a Deluxe Edition of his first album, Endtroducing....

Also in 2005, Brian Udelhofen began work on the Shadow Percussion Project, an attempt to adapt some of the tracks from Endtroducing... for a live performance group. The result was largely successful and well-received by DJ Shadow himself.

He is currently working on a new album, and plans to go on tour in the year 2006.

He has also collaborated with several other artists, including Blackalicious, Zack de la Rocha, Keak Da Sneak, David Banner and Keane.

In 2006, he signed a deal with Universal Records.

On May 17, 2006, Pitchforkmedia.com revealed that Shadow's third full-length album will be titled The Outsider. It will be released August 1, 2006.

Discography

Solo Albums

with Q-bert

  • 1997 - Camel Bobsled Race (Q-Bert Mega Mix) CD-EP

with U.N.K.L.E.

with Cut Chemist

with Dan The Automator

  • 1998 - Bombay the Hard Way: Guns, Cars and Sitars

Mixes

Albums Featured

Singles

  • 1991 - Lifer's Group/DJ Shadow - The Real Deal (Shadow Remix)/Lesson 4 Promo 12" Only
  • 1993 - Asia Born/DJ Shadow - Send Them/Count and Estimate (Dub)/Hip-Hop Reconstruction from the Ground Up 12"
  • 1993 - In/Flux / Hindsight 12"
  • 1994 - Lost & Found (S.F.L.) (Split 12" with DJ Krush - Kemuri)
  • 1995 - What Does Your Soul Look Like
  • 1996 - Fully Charged on Planet X / Hardcore (Instrumental) Hip-Hop (by Chief Xcel/DJ Shadow - Hardcore (Instrumental) Hip-Hop and Last Stop are Shadow tracks)
  • 1996 - Midnight in a Perfect World
  • 1996 - Stem CD/7"
  • 1997 - High Noon CD/12"/7"
  • 2000 - Dark Days (Music from Dark Days Documentary Soundtrack) CD/7"
  • 2002 - You Can't Go Home Again CD/12"
  • 2002 - Six Days CD/DVD/12"
  • 2003 - Mashin' on the Motorway / Walkie Talkie CD/DVD
  • 2003 - March of Death (with Zack de la Rocha) mp3 only
  • 2004 - Would You Buy A War From This Man? 7" Picture disk (Remix of Radiohead's The Gloaming)
  • 2005 - Keane - We Might As Well Be Strangers (DJ Shadow vs. Keane Mix) 10"
  • 2006 - 3 Freaks - DJ Shadow feat. Turf Talk & Keak da Sneak 12" Promo

Live DVDs

  • 2000 - Freeze VHS/DVD
  • 2004 - Product Placement on Tour CD/DVD
  • 2004 - In Tune and On Time CD/DVD

Live Appearances

  • BBC Radio One: Breezeblock (06/01/99)
  • La Route Du Rock Festival, St Malo, France (8-13-99)
  • BBC Radio One: Breezeblock (12/04/00)
  • Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY (06/04/02)
  • BBC Radio One: Essential Mix (03/30/03)
  • O2 Wireless Festival: Hyde Park (06/23/06)

See also

Similar artists

External links

1973 births | Living people | Electronic musicians | Hip hop DJs | Trip hop artists | Hip hop producers

DJ Shadow | DJ Shadow | DJ Shadow | DJ Shadow | DJ Shadow | DJ Shadow | DJ Shadow | DJ Shadow

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "DJ Shadow".

Home Page • arts • business • computers • games • health • hospitals • home • kids & teens • news • physicians • recreation• reference • regional • science • shopping • society • sports • world