The live DJ/producer performance is always a dicey proposition. More than once my attention has left the building during a marathon set that didn't stray from pure, well-oiled precision. I'm not an aspiring DJ or a sample-minded trainspotter, so the actual technique behind the music, though initially novel, doesn't keep me absorbed for long. What I look for from a DJ (and rarely receive) is a one-man show that builds tension and offers resolution, a dynamic process similar to that of a strong, inspired band. Moving asses on the dance floor and scoring points for proficiency are certainly admirable accomplishments, but by no means impossible, or even unusual; any serious musician should be able to do both. But to really inspire emotion, to resonate powerfully and universally, to make people connect and feel something-- those are the pinnacles of live performance. And when a single DJ-- the modern embodiment of composer, conductor, and soloist-- does it all before your eyes, the sense of perfect musical destiny is palpable.
In the past, Shadow's club shows have been of a good-not-great caliber, since, no matter how talented the DJ, it's tough to really kick shit up onstage just standing at a turntable. So, taking that working DJ's bane to heart, Shadow enlisted Bay Area projection wizard Ben Stokes to step up the visual element of his 2002 world tour, and was apparently impressed enough with the result that he produced this DVD as a permanent document (packaged with an audio version on CD), which (mostly) captures the second evening of a two-night run at London's Brixton Academy.
Even after Shadow "demystifies" his creative tools, pointing out his inventory (two Technics 1200s, two CDJs and a sampler/sequencer) in a monotone monologue intro, it's still nearly impossible to determine how he smoothly wrangles so many layers of sound. The show moves through five movements and an encore, each blending tracks from Shadow's entire catalog, creating something like a remixed symphony that ebbs and flows, rises and falls, with rigorous attention paid to dynamics. Shadow states in this release's liner notes that his prior live efforts "only really got interesting when the songs were not only on time but in tune as well." Here, along with the visual backdrops that accompany the songs on three large screens, the segues and arrangements that link them become a crucial part of the concert experience.
With the exception of a brief lull midway through the set, Shadow emerges totally successful. He even encourages the crowd early on to consider the mostly downtempo performance as a "late night movie." The narrative imagery that appears during "Building Steam with a Grain of Salt" and graceful, street-level driving shots that accompany "What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 2)", both from Endtroducing..., give an epic, storybook feel to these already dramatic numbers. When Shadow twists the Richard Ashcroft vocals on "Lonely Soul" into "Lost & Found", Stokes offers an abstract, swirling background that matches the songs' spiraling rhythms. During the profound "You Can't Go Home Again" encore, city scenes blend into windswept beaches, mirroring the song's moody, bittersweet grandeur.
As the film cuts through multiple angles, we get the up-close DJ handcam as well an overhead, full array cam that reveals a massive tangle of music equipment that, from this distance, wouldn't appear out of place in a 747 cockpit. All the while, Shadow's own post-production makes use of split-screen panels and overlapping to offer the home viewer visual effects to which the head-nodding punters in London weren't privy. In ways, it's almost damaging for this set to be this stunning, as it could too greatly heighten expectations for Shadow's future shows. Then again, if he's capable of living up to it on upcoming tours, his may well go down as the greatest show in turntablism.
