Josh Davis aka DJ Shadow is about to reissue his Mo Wax singles as a deluxe boxset . This gives me a good excuse to share a few thoughts on his landmark Mo Wax debut…

“This is a song about life, death, love, hate, wealth, poverty… just a few things that have been running through my head…”

There’s no denying that DJ Shadow’s “In / Flux” was groundbreaking. When I interviewed Shadow recently and asked if, back in 1993, there was any precedent for a 12 minute long instrumental hip hop track, he said, “Well, I always try to be self-effacing, shine the spotlight on one of my heroes, but…” he paused for a second and then answered, “The Adventures Of Grandmaster Flash On The Wheels Of Steel”. 

This is true, I guess, but only sort of. While “In / Flux” does clearly have its roots in the music of Flash, and other pioneers such as Kurtis Mantronix, it swaps the scratch for Akai MPC samples and, importantly, transforms cut & paste into composition (1). 

Taking a leap from the giant shoulders of Double Dee & Steinski’s “Lessons” (2), on “In / Flux” each element, an instrument repurposed from a bargain bin bit of vinyl, is gradually, individually introduced and interwoven. Brass, cascading keys. A flute, a slow break, a quick scratch. Reed riffs duetting with the turntable. The rhythm might be looped but the track is constantly evolving. A marvel of magpie-d musicality. A collage of spoken samples – 32 lifted from 24 records – providing the narration. Joining in unity comedians, Rastas and Civil Rights poetry. Someone warns of “social narcotics” and uptown there’s a breakdown, before the snares rattle and rev back up. 

“In / Flux” came at a time, when club-wise a lot of UK folks, me included were, under the guidance of gurus such as Andrew Weatherall, raving to the racing, runaway BPMs of trance and techno (3).  Shadow’s drop in tempo alone seemed like a bold, brave, stand alone move, a revolutionary statement, and in my mind the track has become a landmark.

The record also represents the point where the label, Mo Wax, began to break free from the influence / legacy of founder James Lavelle’s mentor Gilles Peterson, and his imprints, Acid Jazz and Talkin’ Loud. Becoming a recognisable separate entity. With “In / Flux” slowly, quietly leading the charge, the sleeves switched from Swifty’s classic, characteristic typography to Futura 2000’s iconic graffiti (4), and the music shifted completely into the abstract, and experimental, futuristic forward-thinking beats. In a very real way “In / Flux” became Mo Wax’s manifesto. 

“We are a part of those concerned with change…”

NOTES 

1. You can hear the beginnings / birth of this process / technique in the coda of Shadow’s remix of Zimbabwe Legit – an Afrocentric blend built around Idris Mohammed’s “Lohran’s Dance”. This was the record that first alerted Lavelle to Shadow’s genius, and was eventually included in Mo Wax’s 1996 “Headz 2” box set. 

2. One of Shadow’s first commissions was a 1991 remix of Lifers Group, for the legendary Dave “Funken” Klein, A&R at Disney’s hip hop label, Hollywood BASIC. On the flip of that 12, Shadow paid direct homage to Double Dee & Steinski with “Lesson 4”. Energetically editing crates of juxtaposed breaks, including classics like “Apache”, “Scratchin`” and Herman Kelly. 

3. Weatherall was a big hip hop fan and played at least 1 Shadow production on the radio. During his 1994 sessions on then pirate station Kiss FM, Weatherall aired Asia Born’s “Send Them”, a creative cut that mixed up timbales, snake charmer reeds, ragga drops and a Cypress Hill-esque battle rap. The 12 had recently been released on the Bay Area label that Shadow co-founded, Solesides. Something that ran in parallel to Shadow’s UK Mo Wax success. 

Coincidentally also on that Solesides 12 was a track called “Entropy”, the drums from which I immediately recognised, since they’d been bitten by a Brighton based trio named Strata 3. The tune took a loop, phased, EQ-ed it, and fused it to epic symphonic strings and a slow, low groovy bass-line. Scratches and Sea Of Tranquility transmissions of Richard Nixon gave the track its title:

“Because of what you have done, the heavens have become part of man’s world.”

The results recalling the downtempo stuff on Netherlands imprint Eevo Lute Muzique.

I later became good friends with 2 thirds of Strata 3, the brothers Curtis and Simon James, since we all hung out at Ed Birch’s esteemed Brighton clothes shop, The One40Five Store. I straight away asked them about “Entropy” and they told me that they’d actually met Shadow. In a subsequent post, Simon will share that story. 

4. This shift in Mo Wax’s sleeves began with “In / Flux”, which was released both as a regular 12 and a limited picture disc. The latter featured graffiti graphics from Stan “The 8th Wonder” Green, Shadow’s friend since high school and fellow hip hop obsessive. 

DJ Shadow’s “In / Flux” can be found on a forthcoming boxset, which comprehensively, and lavishly, across 8 x 12″s, documents Shadow’s Mo Wax singles. You can find more details on Shadow’s site, where you can also pre-order this deluxe item directly.