Considered a prominent figure in the development of instrumental hip-hop, D… Read Full Bio ↴Considered a prominent figure in the development of instrumental hip-hop, DJ Shadow (real name Josh Davis) has proven himself with groundbreaking, genre-defining solo output on such respected labels as Solesides and Mo' Wax.

DJ Shadow spent his teenage years in Davis, California and was a DJ at the community radio station KDVS. During his time as a radio disc jockey, DJ Shadow was significant in developing the experimental instrumental hip-hop style associated with the California-based Solesides record label. His early singles for the label, including In/Flux and Lost and Found (S.F.L.), were genre-bending works of art merging elements of funk, rock, hip-hop, ambient, jazz, soul, and used-bin found records. DJ Shadow is often cited as a leading creator of trip-hop, though this is a label he strongly contests.

Although he previously released a couple of original works (during 1991-1992 for Hollywood Records) by the time Mo' Wax's James Lavelle contacted him about releasing In/Flux on the fledgling imprint, it wasn't until his distribution association with Mo' Wax that his sound began to mature and cohere.

Shadow's first full-length work, Endtroducing....., was released in late 1996 to immense critical acclaim. Following the success of this album, he acted as a shadow producer for Rage Against The Machine for their album, Evil Empire. It is said he influenced the solo on their song "Bulls On Parade". Endtroducing... made the Guinness World Records book for "First Completely Sampled Album" in 2001. Preemptive Strike, a compilation of early singles, followed in early 1998. Later that year, Shadow produced tracks for Psyence Fiction, the debut album by U.N.K.L.E., a long-time Mo' Wax production team that gained superstar guests including Thom Yorke (of Radiohead), Richard Ashcroft (of The Verve), Mike D (of the Beastie Boys) and others. His next project came in 1999, with the transformation of Solesides into a new label, Quannum Projects. Nearly six years after his debut production album, his second album, The Private Press, was released in June 2002. In the same year, the movie "Scratch" (2001, Doug Pray) was released to DVD with DJ Shadow appearing several times throughout the movie.

The documentary films "Dark Days" and "Wisconsin Death Trip" feature music of DJ Shadow while "Scratch" features an interview and more music.

DJ Shadow has also collaborated with fellow artist Cut Chemist. Together they have made two CDs entitled Brainfreeze and Product Placement. These albums fuse jazz, funk, and soul in the framework of a cohesive concept. The second of these (Product Placement) followed a very similar pattern to the first, but using remixes/other versions of the songs in roughly the same order.

In the year 2004, Shadow released his feature length DVD, In Tune and On Time. The DVD features a live performance in London, emphasizing intricate visuals.

In 2005, Shadow released a Deluxe Edition of his first album, Endtroducing.... and a new album, titled "The Outsider" in 2006.

While Shadow's earlier works, especially 'Endtroducing.....', are known for their innovation in genres such as hip-hop, ambient, and trip-hop, his fourth full length album, The Outsider, had several tracks dedicated to Hyphy. This decision has been controversial, leaving many fans feeling alienated. DJ Shadow addressed this point in an August, 2006 interview, in which stated, "Repeat Endtroducing over and over again? That was never, ever in the game plan. Fuck that. So I think it's time for certain fans to decide if they are fans of the album, or the artist."

Also in 2005, Brian Udelhofen began work on the Shadow Percussion Project, an attempt to adapt some of the tracks from Endtroducing... for a live performance group. The result was largely successful and well-received by DJ Shadow himself.

In 2007 DJ Shadow was contacted by the Hollywood Bowl to do a show featuring Freeze with Cut Chemist. However, not wanting to repeat old material DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist came up with a whole new routine entitled The Hard Sell. In 2007 and 2008 they went on The Hard Sell tour and were accompanied on stage by two large video screens with visuals created for the tour.

Discography

Solo Albums

* 1996 - Endtroducing.....
* 1998 - Preemptive Strike
* 2000 - Dark Days
* 2002 - The Private Press
* 2003 - The Private Repress (Japanese Remix Album)
* 2004 - In Tune and On Time
* 2005 - Endtroducing... (2xCD Deluxe Edition)
* 2006 - The Outsider
* 2007 - The 4-Track Era Vol.1 Best of the KMEL Mixes
* 2007 - The 4-Track Era Vol.2 Best of the Remixes and Megamixes (1990-1992)
* 2011 - The Less You Know, the Better

with Q Bert

* 1997 - Camel Bobsled Race (Q-Bert Mega Mix) CD-EP

with UNKLE

* 1998 - Psyence Fiction

with Cut Chemist

* 1999 - Brainfreeze
* 2001 - Product Placement
* 2004 - Product Placement on Tour
* 2005 - Freeze
* 2008 - The Hard Sell

with Dan The Automator

* 1998 - Bombay the Hard Way: Guns, Cars and Sitars

Hindsight
DJ Shadow Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Don't think of the could've beens
Don't think of what should've been
Weed out your weaknesses
Piled up issue makes a mess
Don't think you had a chance
Don't dwell on lost romance
Nothing is guaranteed
Or caters to stupidity

They say life is what you make it
Can't go back and try to change it
Learn to live with your regrets

Choose a path choose it right
It's all there in black and white
Disassociate joy and wealth
Just don't even kid yourself

They say life is what you make it
Can't go back and try to change it
Choices that were made
Opportunities
Push away the pain and move on
With no delay
Move on accept the shame
Learn to live with your regrets
Move on with no delay

Move on accept the shame
It's all behind you anyway

Overall Meaning

The song "Hindsight" is an introspective song about the human tendency to dwell on past regrets and missed opportunities. It warns against getting stuck in the past and urges listeners to focus on the present and future. The opening lines urge listeners not to dwell on what could have been and to instead "weed out" their weaknesses. The song suggests that holding onto regrets and past mistakes only creates a "piled up issue" that leads to a "mess."

The chorus emphasizes the importance of accepting one's mistakes and moving forward without delay. It insists that life is what one makes it and that it is impossible to change the past. Making the right choices and disassociating joy and wealth from one's decisions are important themes in the song. The final lines encourage listeners to push away the pain and accept the shame of their mistakes in order to learn to live with their regrets.

Overall, "Hindsight" offers a thoughtful message about the importance of learning from one's past mistakes without getting stuck in them. The song's gentle instrumentation and introspective lyrics add to its emotional impact, making it a powerful ballad about the human experience.

Line by Line Meaning

Don't think of the could've beens
Stop dwelling on the things that never happened

Don't think of what should've been
Stop pondering about what could have been

Weed out your weaknesses
Eliminate your flaws and shortcomings

Piled up issue makes a mess
Allowing problems to pile up will only make things worse

Don't think you had a chance
Stop believing that you were meant to succeed

Don't dwell on lost romance
Stop dwelling on the past and lost love

Nothing is guaranteed
You can't count on anything to be certain

Or caters to stupidity
No one benefits from making foolish decisions

They say life is what you make it
It's often said that your life is determined by your choices

Can't go back and try to change it
You can't change the past, so don't try

Learn to live with your regrets
Accept and learn from your mistakes and remorse