Sep. 17th, 2006 09:12 am
dj shadow & dj spooky
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toastykittenThere's a SF Weekly profile of DJ Shadow, which is really long, with a few surprises. It's kind of disappointing to learn that he lives in Marin County even if, by the writer's standards, it's "modest" - home prices in Marin are astronomical. It is funny, how he's been getting criticized by a bunch of his fans for getting into "hyphy" (which, even though I should know this shit, know nothing about) and having that influence his style. I think people hear about it and think Oakland = black = ghetto = too good for it.
The article also compares his success with that of DJ Spooky, who is black, and while he's been successful, hasn't had the kind of fervent fanaticism that DJ Shadow inspired. DJ Spooky's style, according to the article at least, has been criticized in the past, for trying to sound too intellectual, even though he's experimented in the same way that DJ Shadow has.
While I think race factors significantly into how both are perceived, DJ Spooky's outspoken politics also factor into it. I know nothing of Shadow's political views, but I know a lot about Spooky's just from reading that one article in the Nation, and while right now it's not necessarily an unpopular viewpoint, it would have been considered pretty reactionary in the recent past by the mainstream. Whoever they are.
For the record, I like them both.
The article also compares his success with that of DJ Spooky, who is black, and while he's been successful, hasn't had the kind of fervent fanaticism that DJ Shadow inspired. DJ Spooky's style, according to the article at least, has been criticized in the past, for trying to sound too intellectual, even though he's experimented in the same way that DJ Shadow has.
While I think race factors significantly into how both are perceived, DJ Spooky's outspoken politics also factor into it. I know nothing of Shadow's political views, but I know a lot about Spooky's just from reading that one article in the Nation, and while right now it's not necessarily an unpopular viewpoint, it would have been considered pretty reactionary in the recent past by the mainstream. Whoever they are.
For the record, I like them both.
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