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Quote:Check out http://www.wired.com. Great interview with DJ Shadow.
No kidding, thanks for mentioning this. I would have totally missed it. Here’s a direct link to the article: DJ Shadow: The Internet Is Not Your Savior
And here’s a first listen of the new album: First Listen: The Less You Know, The Better.
On his latest album, The Less You Know, The Better, Josh Davis (a.k.a. DJ Shadow) continues to showcase his skills as a left-field hip-hop shaman and sample-loving weaver of gritty, mystic tales of the everyday. Recalling much of his early work, but with a refined slant, the new record has a thoughtfully sequenced beginning, middle and end. Think of The Less You Know, The Better — out Oct. 4 — as an epic film score without the film.
DJ Shadow is a sort of sonic Merlin: He’s known and revered for his buoyant beats, hypnotic loops and dark textural expanses, but he leads listeners to places where a nightlight, and even sunlight, can be glimpsed. Highlights of the new record include collaborations with an impressive array of vocalists, including Yukimi Nagano of Little Dragon, Posdnuos of De La Soul, Tom Vek and Talib Kweli. But at the end of this star-strewn roller coaster, intensity and mellow introspection await.
RE: Shadow, not a comment on his music as I’ve not heard any, but his interview with wired seems like he’s floating on a protesting cloud without a base – or a well thought out perspective. Many points in his interview seem like presentations of straw-man arguments, essentially calling the internet an ‘entity’ which is failing ‘us’, etc..basically protesting techno-corporatism and mislabeling the internet as being ‘sold’ to people as a ‘savior’ in a spiritual sense… I’m not really a fan of that kinda nonsense.
I’m not leaving Chengdu til the 3rd though, so might check out his tunes on the 2nd and ignore the interview content and his positions on licensing. 😀
RE: Shadow, not a comment on his music as I’ve not heard any, but his interview with wired seems like he’s floating on a protesting cloud without a base – or a well thought out perspective. Many points in his interview seem like presentations of straw-man arguments, essentially calling the internet an ‘entity’ which is failing ‘us’, etc..basically protesting techno-corporatism and mislabeling the internet as being ‘sold’ to people as a ‘savior’ in a spiritual sense… I’m not really a fan of that kinda nonsense.
Rick, I’ve got to call you on this one as I disagree with your phrasing this as ‘nonsense’ whole heartedly. First up, had you been following Shadow for the span of his career you would know that he’s eminently placed to make such remarks, and do so with some authenticity. Secondly, the music industry has unquestionably been broken up by the Internet, for good and bad. Thirdly, this thread is about the festival and it’s music, not the critique of an artists perosnal view.
😀
I only brought it up because the article was talked about/linked above.. I’m always down for good beats.
Did you read the article and interview in detail? Some things just struck me raw, “eminently placed to make such remarks” – well, the stuff that I didn’t like was his implications that the masses have bought into the internet looking for ‘spiritual salvation’, but he’s better than that and people should follow in his footsteps, he’s giving advice/criticism that appears to be from a soapbox of arrogance. Stuff like “And I still engage with technology, but I don’t look to it for salvation.”, “the way I walk the tightrope is that I use the internet, and try to avoid letting it use me.”, and “I’m on my computer 10 hours a day as it is”.. I just dislike the preachy attitude in the first half.
Shadow said some similar stuff in the Guardian recently and the readers crucified him. Actually, i think his position is pretty well thought out and i absolutely agree with him about some stuff. Anyway, it’s good to see an artist who stands for something. Can’t wait for the gig…
@tigerkuma – I read that, he took quite a pasting on the comments.
He was also interviewed by pitchfork a couple of months ago
Pitchfork: A new school of instrumental hip-hop-indebted artists including AraabMuzik and Clams Casino have emerged recently. Have you heard them? What do you think?
DJS: I’ve always been compared to people. It’s a revolving cast that comes and goes– obviously, sometimes people stay. But, frequently, when I’m compared to someone, I’m like, “Is that really what people think I sound like?” [laughs] That’s not a diss, because I haven’t heard the music of the two people that you just mentioned, but that has happened before. Once I do hear it, I’m like, “I’m sure they wouldn’t want to be compared to me and I don’t really see the comparison.”
The blog post with photos from the festival has just been published, check it out here: Photos from Panda Festival with DJ Shadow
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