One of hip-hop's pioneering giants rolls in - no 'Endtroductions' necessary

It's been a long time coming, but DJ Shadow is hitting the decks in Bangkok. The Californian will finally be at Club Culture on Wednesday.

Shadow - real name Josh Davis - gained prominence with his experimental hip-hop, sampling funk, rock, ambient and even jazz and soul music, with the likes of Kurtis Mantronik, Steinski and Prince Paul as influences.

"Endtroducing ...", his 1996 full-length debut garnered him global acclaim as the first completely sampled album, made entirely with an Akai MPC60 12-bit sampling drum machine, a pair of turntables and a Pro Tools program.

Shadow followed that with a string of popular albums, all featuring eclectic hip-hop mixes, in collaboration with UNKLE, Cut Chemist, Quantum Collective, Blackalicious, Zack de la Rocha, Mos Def and Dr Octagon, who's better known as Kool Keith.

His well-respected pieces that set the trend for the younger generation include "Pre-emptive Strike", "Dark Days", "The Private Press" and "The Outsider".

"To me, what hip-hop stood for was unity through music," Shadow once told Techno Online.

"On a physical basis, it manifests itself in people like Bambaataa. He was called the peacemaker because he encouraged all the gangs from New York to stop fighting over turf and start rallying around with music instead. This may sound corny, but it actually happened, you know!"

 REPRESENT!

>> DJ Shadow performs on Wednesday at Club Culture on Sri Ayutthaya Road, near the Phya Thai Skytrain station.

>> Tickets are Bt580 in advance at the club, at the Sripoom Espresso Bar on Khao San Road and at Cafe de Moc on Ratchadamnoen Road. Wait till that night and you pay Bt1,000 at the door. A free drink is included.

 >> Call (02) 642 5499 or head to www.Club-Culture-BKK.com.