The unassuming genius of DJ Shadow should be appreciated like a beautifully crafted, larger-than-life statue. You must step back and truly take in every sonic twist thrown at you while appreciating the nuanced craftsmanship needed to create such a monument to the future of music. Born Joshua Davis, DJ Shadow began experimenting with a four-track recorder while attending high school in his native Davis, California. It wasn’t until college that DJ Shadow would enter the world of DJing as a disc jockey for the university’s radio station. His ambitions as a musician were clear on his first two, largely forgotten singles “In/Flux” and “Lost and Found (S.F.L)”. It was this early on in his career that he would be labeled as a “trip-hop” producer, a newfound term that was closely associated with artists on the U.K. ‘s Mo’ Wax Records. Trip-hop relates to the fusion of hip-hop, electronic, and ambient music as they combine together for a psychedelic-leaning soundscape that has been manipulated and coined by the likes of Portishead and Massive Attack. DJ Shadow was an early adopter of this sound in the States and quickly separated himself from his peers, allowing his discography to be built on his meticulous creativity.
In the early 90s, DJ Shadow began connecting with fellow California-raised hip-hop heads Lyrics Born and the duo Blackalicious to create Solesides, their short-lived yet iconic independent label. After a handful of 7” singles, Mo’ Wax reached out to DJ Shadow to release the aforementioned “In/Flux” and “Lost and Found” singles, and his relationship with the British imprint began. It would be this same label that released his iconic 1996 debut Endtroducing. Outside of being the first album to be fully created with just samples, the album introduced the world to DJ Shadow’s expertly crafted instrumentals that evoke equal levels of nostalgia and futuristic sonics. This is where it all began, since his debut LP DJ Shadow has worked with some of the most prominent musicians of his time and created a discography that blends different genres from different eras and spits out cosmic instrumentals worthy to soundtrack a relaxing day or a frantic house party.
Just last week, DJ Shadow announced the latest addition to his legendary discography. The producer’s new LP, Action Adventure is set to be released on October 27 and is promising to be an instrumental journey of epic proportions. In preparation for the release, Glide revisited DJ Shadow’s discography to rank his studio albums from best to worst and highlight the best songs he’s ever touched. Check out our picks below:
6. Album: Our Pathetic Age
Release: November 15, 2019
Highlights: “Beauty, Power, Motion, Life, Work, Chaos, Law”,
His most ambitious album by far, DJ Shadow’s sixth studio effort showcased a veteran still willing to challenge himself. The double-disc LP had the producer mixing his influences with his experiences with past releases for a colorful array of instrumentals while the second half featured guest appearances from some of the best rappers to ever touch a mic. With legends like Nas and De La Soul making an appearance to modern heroes like Pusha T and Run The Jewels representing a new era of Hip-hop, DJ Shadow pieced together a tracklist that fully encompassed his artistic arch.
The instrumental side features more electronically-driven arrangements that range from jazzy bliss to filthy, head-nodding drum patterns. The minimal sound of disc one is almost forgotten once the lively, fiery beats of disc two kick in.
The “vocal side” of DJ Shadow’s sixth studio LP has some aforementioned legends rapping like they’re in their prime over hazy drum loops and hectic electronic blips, a much-needed return to form for a producer who loves exploring new sonic areas. Our Pathetic Age might do a good job of encapsulating the varying soundscapes DJ Shadow has entered although it is far from his best effort due to the overdone minimalism of disc one being largely outdone by disc two.
5. Album: The Private Press
Released: June 4, 2002
Highlights: “Walkie Talkie”, “Giving Up the Ghost”, “You Can’t Go Home Again”
With a noticeably more confident sound and a refreshing palette of samples, DJ Shadow’s sophomore album is horribly underrated. The instrumentals that make up The Private Press sound like the product of global influences mixed with lessons learned from a stellar debut, scoffing at the idea of a “sophomore slump”.
While not as largely recognized as Endtroducing, DJ Shadow’s 2002 LP shows an artist refusing to repeat himself. Instead, his sampling techniques became more honed and his ear for samples grew larger allowing the artist to expand and reconfigure his already unique style. You can hear his growth in the funky rhythms of “Giving Up the Ghost” and the more electric-leaning yet equally infectious“Right Thing/GDMFSOB”, two of the best instrumentals in his whole discography. The Private Press did not have an easy job living up to his groundbreaking debut but DJ Shadow ignored the outside noise to piece together a wide array of tones and textures, adding up to one hell of a sophomore LP.
4. Album: The Outsider
Released: September 19, 2006
Highlights: “Seein’ Thangs”, “Keep ‘Em Close”, “Artifact”
With the pressures of a debut album and its even more stressful follow-up now put to the side, DJ Shadow looked to reinvent himself. This album not only has the first features in his discography but these vocalists spit over some of the most off-kilter instrumentals DJ Shadow has ever made. Putting vocalists on these particular instrumentals adds the perfect amount of texture to their sparse experimentation, a combination that is only able to produce the seismic sound of The Outsider. Through a newfound sense of freedom comes DJ Shadow’s most daring yet rewarding album, a collection of refreshing instrumentals that are paired with some of Hip-hop’s finest like David Banner and Phonte. While this album pulls from an array of genres and influences, the wonky melodies and unconventional textures bleed together to create his most consistent album to date. DJ Shadow put together a dense, synth-drenched LP that holds up nearly twenty years after its release and stands as a pillar of the artist’s tireless creativity.
3. Album: The Mountain Will Fall
Released: June 24, 2016
Highlights: “Bergschrund”, “The Mountain Will Fall”, “Mambo”
While DJ Shadow’s fifth studio LP is most known for providing us with the incredible Run The Jewels-assisted “Nobody Speak”, that is only the tip of the iceberg. The Mountain Will Fall features a more electronic influence compared to the rest of his hip-hop-heavy discography, opening up a whole new realm for the producer to play with. The warping melodies giveaway to his signature erratic drums with a carefully selected list of features adding to the aforementioned electronics. The album has DJ Shadow continuing to explore more obscure song structures and the synth-heavy arrangements allow those structures to become even more unpredictable. This gave way to some of his most experimental songs such as the overtly fun yet challenging “Mambo” and the festival-ready “Pitter Patter”. While this is far from his most cohesive outing, The Mountain Will Fall welcomed a new side to DJ Shadow’s production and showed just how fearless he can be when his creativity itches for something refreshing.
2. Album: The Less You Know, The Better
Released: September 30, 2011
Highlights: “I’ve Been Trying”, “Enemy Lines”, “Def Surrounds Us”
DJ Shadow is never one to rush the release of an album and the time spent between his third and fourth allowed him to flush out the colossal The Less You Know, The Better. In an onslaught of punk tempos and chaotic drums “Border Crossing” welcomes you to DJ Shadows’ fourth and most chaotic album to date. The way he is able to make a slow-burning instrumental like “Sad and Lonely” transition into the tightly-wound, minimal punk of the Tom Vek-assisted “Warning Call” shows the restless creativity of an artist with unlimited potential.
It is rare to find an artist with so little to prove on his fourth outing but everything about DJ Shadow is rare. With fewer vocal features, DJ Shadow is able to let his instrumentals do the talking and they scream expertly crafted melodies and otherworldly textures layered on one another to give the album a psychedelic feeling. He deployed more guitars than ever and dove headfirst into a wide range of genres although the underlying soulfulness of even the most hectic instrumental gives the album the consistency it needed to land so high on our list.
1. Album: Endtroducing…
Released: September 16, 1996
Highlights: “Building Steam With A Grain of Salt”, “Changeling”, “Mutual Slump”
In a violently expert display of the newly coined genre “trip-hop”, DJ Shadow’s ‘96 debut is held in high regard for a reason. Through a maze of chopped samples and neck-breaking drums, the producer creates collage-style arrangements lined with psychedelic tendencies that restructure the concept of sampling. Outside of its obvious impact on Hip-hop at large, this project allowed DJ Shadow to introduce his unique artistry to the world and open the door to work with artists outside of the genre. There is not a second wasted on this LP as it is recognized by the Guinness World Records as the first album to be created entirely with samples.
