DJ Shadow Endtroducing..... 30th Anniversary Tour
Franklin Music Hall
421 N 7th St.
Philadelphia
Oct. 9, 2026
Thursday, April 24, 1997 was the last time I saw DJ Shadow (aka Josh Davis) perform live. His watershed debut album Endtroducing….. had been out for about 6 months and as a beats and samples-crazed 16-year-old, I made my way to the TLA on South Street to check him out. Alongside Shadow, the bill was stacked; Jeru The Damaja, Latyrx and Philly legends, The Mountain Brothers all played that night. Davis went on last and he didn’t really have a live set built around his soon-to-be classic album. Composed entirely of dozens of samples, Endtroducing’s arrangements shifted between hardcore hip-hop, dreamy jazz-ambient sections, gothic organ solos and meticulously constructed drum programming. While electronic music was on the verge of a global boom, there wasn’t really the technological capability to reproduce such a wildly complex album on stage at a rap tour in 1997. Instead, Shadow played a proper hip-hop DJ set, dropping breakbeats and ‘80s rap staples like Ultramagnetic MCs’ “Ego Trippin’.” While the set was unexpected, it made sense. By playing those old hip-hop staples, Davis was providing a history lesson for the excited crowd of kids that gathered in front of him with their spiky hair and oversized Tripp pants. The progressive, sample-based music that he made on Endtroducing… was just an extension of the work laid down by hip-hop’s forebears.
In the 30 years since it was released, Endtroducing…’s stature has grown to near-mythic proportions. Rolling Stone included it in its 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list while Pitchfork rated it a perfect 10 out of 10. In celebration of three decades of Endtroducing…, Davis has embarked on a tour that presents the music live in ways that he couldn’t do before. In the lead up to the 30th anniversary, Davis found and refurbished the AKAI MPC60 sampling drum machine that he originally used to compose the album. From there, he created new multi-tracks that would allow him to alter and remix the album’s songs in real time. Armed with a new live set up, it was time to hit the road.
On Friday, Oct. 10, Davis came to Franklin Music Hall for the Philly stop of the Endtroducing… 30th Anniversary Tour. Legendary DJ/Producer Prince Paul opened and began his set with a disclaimer. “I’m working with a piece of equipment I’m not familiar with so if I flub, you didn’t hear it. I’m not AI!” As one of the architects behind the sound of beloved hip-hop groups like De la Soul, Stetsasonic and Handsome Boy Modeling School, Paul’s catalog speaks for itself. During his opening set, he ripped through a high-energy set of rap classics. Davis opened his set with a deconstructed version of “Best Foot Forward,” The quirky now-iconic vocal sample that served as Endtroducing…’s intro rang out over the speakers: “Bob Wood, national program director of the chum group worked with us in producing…” From there, the dark, ambient tones of “Transmission 1” emerged slowly as the whispered “Guess who’s coming?” vocal samples played to an ominous effect. From there, Davis dropped the dramatic pianos from “Building Steam With a Grain of Salt.” At one point, he introduced some double-time, Chicago Footwork-style drums that gave the track a completely different energy and rhythmic feel than the original. “The Number Song” was a straight up turntablist workout with its ever-shifting drum breaks and Davis’ rapid-fire scratching. Another standout was the new take on “What Does Your Soul Look Like” where Davis added some galloping Dilla-style drum patterns. Throughout the set there were slight changes in the original’s arrangements and at times there were dramatic overhauls. Davis even got on the mic to explain the process of reviving and revising these old songs. This performance was much closer to Davis’ vision for a live performance than the show I caught back in ‘97. The fact that Davis can still wring fresh ideas out of these 30+ year-old songs is impressive. Endtroducing… has weathered decades of shifts in music culture and its power and depth have only become more evident.
