It’s funny. Every time DJ Shadow drops a new album, he claims that he won’t take so long to release the next one…and then he takes several years to release the next one. It happened with 2002’s The Private Press, which ended a five year wait for the follow-up to his monumental 1996 debut, Endtroducing. It then took him four years to finish his third album, 2006’s oft-criticized The Outsider.
Perhaps Shadow will surprise us this year by finishing a new album in record time (for him, at least). Why else would this most celebrated and meticulous of hip hop producers release a statement reassuring fans that new music would be released soon?
Here’s “A Message From DJ Shadow”:
Hello, everyone, and Happy 2009. It has been quite a long time since anyone has heard from me, so I thought I would bring you all up to date.
To cut to the chase, this is going to be an interesting year in DJ Shadow-land. As some of my longer-term followers have probably observed, long bouts of silence usually signal changes on the horizon. That’s because I am ‘head down,’ focusing on the tasks at hand and laying a strong foundation to build on over time. There are some things brewing that I’m not at liberty to reveal yet, but that are exciting and very different for me. More about that soon; keep watching this space. But in the meantime…
…Yes, I am working on new music. It is way too early in the day to discuss what it will sound like or when it will come out, but I feel I owe everyone at least that much information; work has begun. Probably the only thing I can promise is that as always, it will sound different from the last one…oh, and that everyone will undoubtedly hate it until two years after the fact. (Let the backlash to the backlash of the backlash BEGIN!!! haha, err…ha)
My touring cycle is generally over, so it will be awhile before most of you will see me live. This is all part of the normal process of exchanging studio life for road life, and vice versa. Both are important, but 2 and 1/2 years touring was enough to buy me some quality time in the lab. That’s not to say that there won’t be ANY shows this year, just that they will be few and generally unique to my “live” stage show. In other words, if it sounds different and fun, I might not be able to resist.
Ok, also, DJShadow.com is about to undergo MAJOR reconstruction. We’re still a couple of months away from relaunch, but when it happens…get ready for some shit. Forget everything you’ve ever thought about what a DJ Shadow site could or should consist of…if we pull it off, I promise you, you’re going to be pleased. I’ll leave it at that for now, in case something happens and it all falls to pieces. Just know that I’m genuinely excited about the future.
I think that’s a good thought to end on…as always, thank you for your support, your honesty, your patronage, your ears; and your time, for reading this.
