DJ Shadow / Cut Chemist + Kid Koala

Tonight, I ventured down to Atlanta to catch one of my all-time favorite musicians (and coincidentally, one of the 10 people I’ve vowed to see live in concert)… DJ Shadow. It was amazing, to say the least. DJ and Justin were kind enough to join me.

The show opened with Kid Koala on 4 decks. He’s a funny little fella, full of energy and just comical to watch. He mixed some great beats, but strangely his cover of “Moon River” stood out the strongest. You have to hear it to understand.

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Then there was an uncomfortable 45 minute downtime before the next act. One thing I observed, people will wait in anticipation in very uncomfortable conditions (hot, crowded, loud, smoky) to see an artist they love and respect.

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Finally, DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist took the stage. There’s so much I heard I don’t believe I could accurately describe it. But a few things caught me as particularly impressive.

(1) DJ Shadow seems genuinely excited about every new 45 he put on his decks. There was a little smile, a twinkle, that showed he had something new coming. His attitude was contagious.

(2) The show started with an “instructional video” of sorts that explained their style of mixing. He then filled in the details. Basically, there were two DJs, 8 turntables, and they used 100% pure vinyl. No electronic samples, no computers, no CD players, no iPod. There were, however, some guitar pedals and a looping pedal for each DJ. But everything was sampled live. They made it a big point to explain they they’re pure vinyl and all live.

That may not sound all that impressive, but it’s incredible to see in motion.

(3) They mixed in some Pac Man and other 80s era video games.

(4) The best part was watching the interplay of the two DJs, perfectly in sync.

(5) They played the new work, The Hard Sell, in its entirety.

(6) They did not rely on repeating their past successful songs, no matter how much the audience demanded it. Rather, they pushed forward, innovated, and created something fresh and authentic.

(7) They used little remote web cams to show the action up close. They weren’t superior in quality at all, but they were 100% perfectly suited to enhance the show.

(8) The show ended with them scratching and remixing the solo to Metallica’s “One.”

That’s all I have time for tonight, I’m beat.