DJ Shadow @ Jack Rabbit Slim’s
Tuesday, May 23, 2017
Legendary, well respected, pioneering producer and turntablist Josh Davis aka DJ Shadow graced Perth with his presence on Tuesday night – and it was a lucky few that turned up to witness an hour and a half of brilliance from a true sonic artist.
Since emerging on the scene with his groundbreaking classic 1996 album Endtroducing….. (the first ever completely sampled album according to Guinness World Records) which fused experimental, instrumental hip hop, sampling and scratching with downtempo trip-hop vibes, DJ Shadow has always blazed his own path.
He worked with James Lavelle on UNKLE’s iconic first album Psyence Fiction, produced award-winning soundtracks (Dark Days) and has collaborated with an amazing list of legendary musicians, including Thom Yorke, Richard Ashcroft, Mike D, Zack de la Rocha, Mos Def, Run the Jewels, Dr Octogon and his good friend Cut Chemist – whom he was here with on his last visit, when they took us on a hip hop history lesson using Afrika Bambaataa’s record collection.
This time he was in the country touring his album The Mountain Will Fall, his best in years, and was also commissioned for an appearance at Sydney’s Vivid LIVE festival alongside The Avalanches.
At his peak Shadow pulled big festival crowds and filled Metros City with his mindblowing audio-visual spectaculars, like the Shadowsphere. These days he’s touring to more modest crowds with a more stripped back live show. While his popularity seems to have waned, he’s still a big drawcard around the world among hip hop heads and turntablists.
Why a man of his repute didn’t draw more than a couple hundred people in Perth is hard to say. Sure tickets weren’t cheap and it was a school night. The promotion of the gig also seemed to be lacking, but there’s no excuses really – it seems many kids just aren’t respecting the greats these days, and it was frankly a little embarrassing.
It’s certainly not doing us any favours when less and less acts seem to be making the trip over to WA. But those that know, knew a Shadow show is something worth venturing out for, even on a cold Tuesday night in May.
Perth’s own Charlie Bucket started off the night as the sparse room slowly filled, before Shadow’s setup was rolled out around 9pm. The venue was changed from The Astor to Jack Rabbit Slim’s late in the piece, which was much more suited with its dark clubby vibe and modest stage setup, creating a real intimate vibe to enjoy a world class talent.
Other artists may have just cancelled after poor ticket sales and venue changes, but not DJ Shadow – the guy’s a real genuine sort. He took the stage casually, sporting a San Francisco Giants baseball cap, and a T-Shirt proclaiming “We Are Never Going Back”, looking not much different than he has for 20 years. And even after all these years, for a man of his stature, he is still incredibly humble and grateful for his dedicated fans. Grabbing the mic, he addressed the crowd: “When I started, I never thought I’d leave California. So I don’t take it for granted. I’ve been coming out here for 22 years, and it’s still special for me to come here.”
The 200 or so there were totally into it, and it made for a great atmosphere. He promised us some old stuff, new stuff and unreleased stuff and seriously delivered with an eclectic, career-spanning set. After a brief dramatic intro, he dropped into the heavy opening/title track of The Mountain Will Fall.
Following on from a mashed-up scratchfest that spanned a few tracks like I Gotta Rokk and the more modern sounds of Bergschrund, he dropped his killer 2003 collaboration with Zack de le Rocha, March Of Death.
It’s quaint, endearing and old school, the way he gets on the mic to tell stories and introduce tracks. “This is old meets new,” he proclaimed before playing a remix of the lush, ambient UNKLE track featuring Thom Yorke’s divine vocals, Rabbit In You Headlights.
The Hudson Mohawke remix of Midnight In A Perfect World was a surprise addition, as was his mix of DJ Krush’s 1995 trip-hop classic Meiso. He was playing all sort of styles, with some obscure selections: “I don’t always do stuff for mass consumption, maybe you’re hearing this for the first time, but it’s three years old.”
He lightened things up a bit with the huge single Nobody Speak featuring Run The Jewels – he even allowed the intro sample to play out a bit, before the familiar voice of El-P came in for the kill. While the amusing video was shown on the big screen behind him, Shadow himself kept busy, cutting, scratching, working the mixer and occasionally hopping over to beat the electronic drums and cymbals.
Segueing into Building Steam With A Grain of Salt, one of his finest tracks, he really built it up to a climax, focussing intensely, triggering samples while slowly pitching it up. This is an artist. One who has mastered his instruments. He is creating live. Weaving his complex, layered compositions. Atmospheric sounds played delicately on top of heavy, blunted bass. Finishing on a big dramatic piece, he left the stage to huge cheers, giving high fives as he retreated upstairs.
Soon he was back, to humbly thank Perth for being so great. He didn’t waste any time getting back into the music, with an unreleased track Corridors, which he said was the fourth time he’d played it.
New album track The Sideshow is a rocking jam and gave him a chance to showcase some more circus tricks, and featured a great backing video of him cutting it up on the decks, in front of a changing backdrop. You sometimes forget what an incredible turntablist he is. The low end was getting a real work out, but coming through clear on the big soundsystem.
Of course there was one thing missing, his biggest tune, the epic Organ Donor – though he didn’t even really play the whole thing, rather a brief excerpt of the riff, mashed up with some trappy sounds and live drumming. As he left the stage he threw his shoes into the crowd and gave out more high fives to the sound of The Mountain Will Fall as the production credits rolled on the screen.
From an audience perspective, small, intimate gigs with a dedicated crowd can sometimes be the best. Shadow deserves more than that – but he’s still so gracious and genuinely appreciative of the people who give back so much energy. Hopefully it was enough to convince him to come back. A deeply enjoyable and inspiring gig from a real legend and a true original, but Perth, where were you? This is why we can’t have nice things.
Words and Photos by
ALFRED GORMAN
