DJ Shadow: DJ Hero will "raise eyebrows"

By Robert Purchese Published 18 May, 2009

"Takes practice to not look like an idiot."

DJ Shadow reckons the amount of freedom DJ Hero offers players over licensed music will "raise some eyebrows" this autumn.

"I don't think a lot of the people that made some of the music we're involved with have ever allowed their music to be so freely messed with, you know what I mean? And I think that this game - I definitely think it will raise some eyebrows on that level," DJ Shadow told Game Informer.

DJ Hero is in development for PS2, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360. And, like Guitar Hero, the game comes with its very own peripheral - a plastic turntable.

We've not see the device in action, but DJ Shadow said any eight year-old kid will be perfectly happy with it.

"Well to me the best way to answer that would be, 'Would this make some eight year old kid who got it for Christmas want to try the real thing?' And I think in that respect the answer is yes," said DJ Shadow.

"Because, you know, it's not the real thing, obviously - but to me when I played it, the first couple of times I was kind of like sensory overload trying to figure out, 'Wow, OK, so this does this and that does that.'

"I mean I've heard people say that with Guitar Hero it's the same thing, like just because you're virtuoso, just because you're Joe Satriani doesn't mean that you're going to be able to kick right into Guitar Hero and be an incredible game player. It's the same with DJ Hero, it takes practice to kind of not look like an idiot," he added.

DJ Shadow lent not only his name and likeness to the project, but also his opinion, which he described as a "bulls***-proof radar". That entailed suggesting the music and mixes to use, as well as checking various samples had been cleared. He's been quite hands-on, apparently.

As for gameplay, players will have to simulate what's being heard with two records and sample track, he said. But don't expect lots of previously unheard DJ Shadow music, as Activision caught him at a time when he didn't have "a lot of new material sitting around".

"So there isn't going to be any of my new stuff in the game, at least not in the first version, maybe in a subsequent version or in download form or something like that," he said.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds. @Clert on Twitter.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (62) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Pastici #1 3 years ago

    I still want to see this in action, like how it really works. DJ Shadow is a plus though.

  • VandelayIndustries #2 3 years ago

    DJ Shadow!?! Well I'm in!

  • TheBoyChris #3 3 years ago

    Sold.

  • BobsUncle #4 3 years ago

    "just because you're Joe Satriani doesn't mean that you're going to be able to kick right into Guitar Hero"

    Well obviously, because playing a guitar and playing guitar hero are two totally different things.

    Anyway, this is bullshit. DJ's aren't even musicians, they simply play other people's pre-recorded music, why would I want to play a game where I emulate someone emulating someone elses music?

  • IneptPercy #5 3 years ago

    "why would I want to play a game where I emulate someone emulating someone elses music?"

    I heard a rumour about a thing called fun.. completely subjective of course.

  • BobsUncle #6 3 years ago

    @IneptPercy

    Sounds rubbish to me though.

  • andijames #7 3 years ago

    @BobsUncle

    Speaking as a DJ and a producer mate i can easily say that we don't just remix all other people's material. You can make stuff from scratch too you know :) It is just easier for people to re-sample other pieces of work true but not every DJ does this.

  • BobsUncle #8 3 years ago

    @andijames

    Those remix only DJ's should be shot. Tell me who they are, I'll put the word out on them...

  • VandelayIndustries #9 3 years ago


    "Anyway, this is bullshit. DJ's aren't even musicians, they simply play other people's pre-recorded music, why would I want to play a game where I emulate someone emulating someone elses music?"

    The aforementioned Mr Shadow is not your common or garden party DJ, but someone who makes new compositions from a multitude of other songs and sources. That's why.

  • Toothball #10 3 years ago

    Oh, they bought DJ Shadow. I really liked him too.

  • BobsUncle #11 3 years ago

    "someone who makes new compositions from a multitude of other songs and sources."

    Yeah, my brother used to do that too. One day he bought two decks and a mixer and after about a week he could do it about as well as any "pro" I've heard.

    I spent seven years learning the saxophone and would never consider myself anywhere near pro, so excuse me for being cynical of DJ's. ;-)

  • syphaa #12 3 years ago

    Hope it some ways its good. Especially for Shadows cred, if its really wank then it will be pinned on his name aswell as acti's.
    I am hoping its good though!

  • Machetazo #13 3 years ago

    The other one looks less crap. But, as usual, they didn't find a way to shout loud/far enough.

  • gaselite #14 3 years ago

    Yeah look BobsUncle the aforementioned DJ Shadow is responsible for what is (rightly) one of the most highly regarded and significant albums ever made so you're just making yourself look like a bit of a fool to be honest.

  • figgis #15 3 years ago

    It's too loud and you can't hear the words!

  • Hypercube #16 3 years ago

    What SJH said. Big up the DJs!

  • BobsUncle #17 3 years ago

    @squarejawhero

    Granted, that would be an impressive display of co-ordination and manual dexterity, but when it comes down to it, it's still just playing someone elses music they've already made.

    Sorry if that upsets you.

  • kangarootoo #18 3 years ago

    @BobsUncle

    "Well obviously, because playing a guitar and playing guitar hero are two totally different things."

    Umm. Isn't that exactly his point?


    And you have a strange old-man attitude when it comes to music. Remixing music is creating new music. You can be a pedant about the words you use, but if you like the result that comes out of your headphones who really cares what you call it? If it were as trvial as you suggest, everyone would be able to do it... but clearly they can't.

    My guess is that you simply don't like the kind of music that DJs produce, and so you try and suggest that is it somehow objectively inferior to music you DO like. How very original of you.


    "Yeah, my brother used to do that too. One day he bought two decks and a mixer and after about a week he could do it about as well as any "pro" I've heard. "

    Well maybe to your clearly highly objective ears he did, but I doubt he would to most other people. I would have thought someone with musical ability would have a better ear, but then we have already established your objectivity is lacking ;)

    Either that or your brother is a prodigy savant. Don't get me wrong, basic beat mixing is easy and the sort of DJing that every celeb under the sun gets up to is feeble and howlow, but proper deck work is extremely tough and nobody on the planet gets really good at it in a week.

  • Widge #19 3 years ago

    Not when it comes down to live re-interpretation using clip triggering, loops and samples. Taking James Zabiela as an example, his reworking of tracks into new composition using CDJs is absolute wizardry. I could only imagine to be anywhere near as technically gifted as him.

    Or Hawtin, deconstructing tunes into component parts, re-sequencing them, layering them, reprogramming them live into new entities using Ableton Live.

    My brother makes a living out of playing other peoples music too. Considering he is one of the countries top classical clarinetists, I'm sure we can let that slide.

  • Milk #20 3 years ago

    @BobsUncle.

    What's wrong with sampling and remixing?

  • AtomicBanana Verified Level Designer, Playground Games #21 3 years ago

    So what does BobsUncle make of scratching and the like? No sensible DJ calls themselves a musician on the basis of what they do on the decks alone, but to just completely dismiss turntablism as 'playing someone else's music' reeks of ignorance.

    As for this game? well I don't see it working, but they may as well milk this concept dry eh?

  • kangarootoo #22 3 years ago

    "but when it comes down to it, it's still just playing someone elses music they've already made."

    But SO WHAT? Pre-fixing something with "its still just" doesn't make it any less of a feat. I call strawman on you.


    Check this out, and skip to 1m.

    [link url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqvWrK_jf3w
    ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqvWrK_jf3w
    [/link]

    I don't expect you to like it, but at least recognise the skill involved.

  • kangarootoo #23 3 years ago

    And skip to 4m. That is technically new music they are making there.

  • Widge #24 3 years ago


    Set programming is also an artform in itself. I liken it to conducting, where you are in charge of tempo, mood and progression. The emotional and aural impact of a set is massively lessened if you've got someone hammering identikit tracks one after another. You need the knowledge of how to build, how to bridge intensities without jarring impact, knowing when and how to release tension. Within this, crate digging is a massive must. All very well to pick out the current in vogue tracks from Resident Advisor, but to see the bigger picture, knowing the history and progression of the factions within electronic music is needed.

    Sure, you get loads of two bit bob along DJs, much as you get swarms of beige singer/songwriters.

  • Widge #25 3 years ago

    I used to play the keyboard and drums, but the area which gives me so much more satisfaction in electronic means is the fact that you don't just control one instrument... you control everything.

  • rudedudejude #26 3 years ago

    playingsomeoneelsesmusiclol

  • layleeloo #27 3 years ago

    Highly sceptical

  • kinky_mong #28 3 years ago

    ""So there isn't going to be any of my new stuff in the game"

    Thank fuck. Shadow's last album was awful. Endtroducing and The Private Press stuff only please.

  • Coughthulu #29 3 years ago

    Please please please please let there be some Kid Koala stuff in it.

    It's starting to sound like it'll be rather wonderful, though.

  • VandelayIndustries #30 3 years ago

    "Endtroducing and The Private Press stuff only please."

    I'd go with Preemptive Strike too.

  • Thalanos #31 3 years ago

    It seems like I may have disengaged my brain and written this game off prematurely. I was honestly expecting a game full of lazy commercial dance music remixes. If DJ Shadow is involved then I guess it could be interesting.

  • Dr.Mott #32 3 years ago

    "just because you're Joe Satriani doesn't mean that you're going to be able to kick right into Guitar Hero"

    Oh my God. DJ Shadow is Joe Satriani!

  • optimusprym8 #33 3 years ago

    Am interested to see how this plays. Glad nothing new is in from DJ Shadow as he kinda lost it for me after Private Press with the direction of more straight up (c)rap

  • gaselite #34 3 years ago

    (c)rap. aha. that's new and funny.

  • Toothball #35 3 years ago

    @optimusprym8:

    I really liked The Outsider though, mainly because it wasn't all just straight DJing or Hip Hop. I thought it was a great collection of different music, especially with tracks like This Time on offer.

    Makes me all the more sad that Activision caught him really.

  • Ryze #36 3 years ago

    I need to try this.

    If it's shite then the ca$h will just go towards real decks / CDJ decks.

  • Bilbo_bobbins #37 3 years ago

    DJ Dogsh!t more like. How is this a game, for christ sake they will make anything to try and make a quick buck. This will turn into "DJ FLOP MASTER"

  • Syrette #38 3 years ago

    Shame Shadow hasn't released anything impressive in years, though.

  • BobsUncle #39 3 years ago

    Wow, some touchy people out there.

    @kangarootoo
    Where exactly did I say DJ music is inferior? And I never said what music I like, so less assumptions please. I mearly said I don't consider DJ's musicians. And I already said that playing 4 decks is an impressive display of co-ordination and manual dexterity. You obviously didn't read any of my posts properly after the first one, the rage had clearly taken over by then.

    @widge
    Your brothers clarinet can't play itself though, can it. :-)


    You'd think I'd just slagged off Halo 3/LPB by how upset some of you are getting!

  • riz23 #40 3 years ago

    I want to stick up for 'The Outsider' too. The Hyphy bands, the musical diversity; it impressed me. You can't stay in that 'lo-fi' vibe forever you know. I'd love to remix 'This time' and mess around with Keak Da Freak as well. Get all Stooey Ka-tooey jumping on cars, Stunna shades etc.

  • ThemisB #41 3 years ago

    Go see a Shadow live set and tell me he's not a 'real' musician.

  • Widge #42 3 years ago

    True, and if I boot up Ableton, it doesn't play itself either.

  • TheBoyChris #43 3 years ago

    @BobsUncle

    I have decks, both CDJ's and vinyls, and it's taken me years to get decent music out of them. It's difficult, it's time consuming and it's expensive, but I manipulate other people's music tracks to create a seamless flow with peaks and troughs. To do this you have to understand music composition very well, and it takes hours and hours of practice.

    You are considering music creation in the purely practical sense and at it's primary source only, whereas music creation is a much, much bigger subject and isn't strictly limited to who plucked the guitar string, or who blew air into what.

    I think the reason people have been rubbed up the wrong way by your statement is due to you stating that DJ's aren't musicians. That's not true to a large portion of the population, so maybe it'd be good to put an "IMHO" in front of stuff like that in the future, and not start with strong phrases like "Anyway, this is bullshit. DJ's aren't even musicians, they simply play other people's pre-recorded music..."

    That's just asking for trouble ;)

  • seasidebaz #44 3 years ago

    DJing is great. I once used that Bow Wow song by the Vengaboys as a bassline (45rpm vinyl dropped to about 15... Stupidly heavy beats)

    Not done it for a while though. My skill was sticking a capella's over music. Truly much fun was had. It takes ages to become good, though.

  • el_pollo_diablo #45 3 years ago

    "So there isn't going to be any of my new stuff in the game"

    Good. His last album was total shit.

  • Sunyavadin #46 3 years ago

    I find playing Guitar Hero harder than actually playing the guitar. And since I can put together some really nice stuff with some synth and mixer software as it is, I honestly don't see myself enjoying this.
    Especially given the sorts of music likely to be included with it if it's going for mass-market appeal. Not my style at all.

  • Tetsuo_Shima #47 3 years ago

    DJ Shadow? As much as I like the man, I hope it isn't all going to be trip hop/hip hop/DnB malarkey (which it looks like it might). At great risk of being fun-poked, I'd prefer if they focussed on yer techno, trance, electro and house styles, or at least granted them equal status to the aforementioned.

  • Monkey_Chops #48 3 years ago

    'Endtroducing' is a modern classic. I'm getting this.

  • gaselite #49 3 years ago

    Shame Shadow hasn't released anything impressive in years, though.

    On the contrary, his live work with Cut Chemist over the past 5 or so years has been of an extremely high calibre. Anybody who's been lucky enough to see The Hard Sell live as I have would testify to that effect. Even if you've been lucky enough to see it on DVD and listen on CD, you'd find it hard to disagree.

    The Outsider wasn't bad per se but by setting himself such high standards early in his career it makes it hard for him to release something as (to put it kindly) eclectic as that. It had some good moments and some shite ones but credit to him for trying something different and not relegating himself to a samey rut. An album like Endtroducing gives him at least like 3 dodgy studio albums worth of goodwill anyway.
    Edited by gaselite at 18/05/09 @ 17:56

  • m0thr4 #50 3 years ago

    @BobsUncle
    A musician is simply someone who creates music. It might be a guitarist re-using chords or chord progressions that have been played a billion times before, a keyboard player using samples of real instruments' individual notes, or a scratch DJ using one or more record decks to create his particular composition.

    I don't see any difference between the way DJ Shadow uses his decks/samplers and the way the Beatles used a Mellotron - especially if you've ever seen him playing live, as I have on two occasions.

    If you're still confusing any artist with the letters "D" and "J" as their alias with the glorified party DJs of the 1990's who simply played other peoples' records back to back (and maybe overlapping them), then you need your head examining for defects.
    Edited by m0thr4 at 18/05/09 @ 17:58

  • CARL05 #51 3 years ago

    I don't think it's been pointed out yet but if your interested then DJ Shadow has uploaded his DJ Hero avatar to MySpace.

    I found it when I was trying to find out who the hell this guy is. I personally think that DJ Hero sounds a bit lame but i'm sure it'll be interesting and sell well. Hopefully we'll see it running at E3.
    Edited by CARL05 at 18/05/09 @ 18:04

  • Rodney #52 3 years ago

    just thought I'd post a couple of links for the 'DJ arent musicians' crowd.

    I'm not entirely sure if I would call them musicians, but anyone who thinks they have no technical skills is just wrong


    [link url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKD0dJvaPOU&feature=channel_page
    ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKD0dJvaP...[/link]

    I have been scratching for 10 years and I am no where near this level

    also, this one is pretty close to a musical composition from scrath, since none of the source material is even recongnisable

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PqvDwBOp9Y

  • Rodney #53 3 years ago

    Tetsuo_Shima

    When I first heard about this, I assumed it would be all house and trance and stuff, but now it sounds like there will be some trip hop/hip hop type stuff I am definately more interested. having both electro and beat orientated music would be best to keep all crowds happy.

    I'm just hoping you can have propper analogue control over the vinyl to make scratching possible, could be a really good piece of kit.

  • gott_sei_dank #54 3 years ago

    For the doubters I would recommend the indie documentry film Scratch, I'm sure you can find it somewhere :p
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scratch_(film)

  • rarebit #55 3 years ago

    nah didn't like shadows last album.

  • djed #56 3 years ago

    Stop it already. Everyone knows BobsUncle isn't a real person.

  • local_celebrity #57 3 years ago

    To be fair, he just comes across as a skunk-addled inarticulate knobhead from those quotes. A Fur-Q with a bit of cred.

    They should have modelled this game around DLT.

    Hairy Conflake Hero anyone?

  • Rodney #58 3 years ago

    To be fair, most DJ’s are a bit crap and nothing more than overhyped wedding DJ’s, overly reliant on mixing aids (insert aids jokes here) and void of any creative or technical ability. I think very few actually fit the definition of a ‘musician’ but I think a few do (in my opinion).

  • BobsUncle #59 3 years ago

    @Rodney, m0thr4, thanks for some rare constructive replies.

    Ok, I may have lumped all DJ's into the same category as the ones who became popular and famous during the 90's, basically the ones who just mix songs together one after the other.

    So, those people that scratch I would admit are technically talented, but in my opinion not really an instrumentalist. I guess musician was the wrong word to use, the people in Stomp probably class themselves as musicians.

    For example, if I gave the sheet music of Flight Of The Bumblebee to Widges brother, he could probably play it on his clarinet. However I really doubt any DJ would be able to play it, without just putting the CD on. A DJ's ability to create music is linked too tightly to their own specific collection of records, Which is basically my point, if you swap a DJ's record collection for a different one, they are screwed. If you swap a pianists piano, he can still play.

    BTW, I watched the videos of the guys scratching, and I have to say, it's really a bit dull to me. The four decks example just seems to be an incredibly precise exercise in oganisation and scheduling more than anything, they only ever really 'play' one at a time, sometimes two, but I find that less impressive than, say, an organist playing four rows of keys and a bass line with thier feet.

    The guys playing thier own tune is clever, but how flexible is that really? I mean, I doubt you can get a huge range of pitch from speeding up or slowing down the same set of long notes.

    The other one playing a drumbeat was pretty cool, but again, can he play a different sounding drum beat? Not without changing the record.

    Anyway, sorry, it's just how I see it.

  • MiniAmin #60 3 years ago

    @BobsUncle.

    I don't think anyone claimed DJs as "instrumentalists".

    What you have done with your last post is waffle about your own opinions on DJs. It's a long series of clauses which amount to no real conclusion. It seems like you simply want people to understand the inferiority of DJs.

    Your opinion isn't irrelevant, as this is a public forum where opinion is invited to flourish...

    But it is certainly stupid. No-one really cares if you think scratching is dull or boring brah. Don't impose your dogma on a gaming forum. Make a petition or something. Move on brah.
    Edited by MiniAmin at 19/05/09 @ 17:11

  • BobsUncle #61 3 years ago

    Brah?

    I guess saying 'Bro' is no longer cool enough for you. Well I'm sure this awesome looking fake tuntable will be.

  • Rodney #62 3 years ago

    Bobsuncle

    It does seem you are arbitrarily defining instrumentalists/musician to purposefully exclude turntablists, because you don’t happen to like it very much. Fine if you think it sounds shit,
    but the problem with your definition is it is so narrow it actually excludes other legitimate musicians. I’m thinking of drummers mainly since they wouldn’t be able to play ‘flight of the bumblebee’ from sheet music either, but it would also exclude people who create music on computer software, perhaps using pre-recorded samples.

    Surely the simplest and most accurate definition of a musician is anyone who creates and/or plays music?

    In that Q-bert drumming video, he was using a pre-recorded drum loop, but he was rearranging it sufficiently so that he was creating an entirely new drum pattern, so I consider that a demonstration of a turntable being used as an instrument.