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Cut Chemist
Background information
Birth name	Lucas C. MacFadden
Born	(1972-10-04) October 4, 1972 (age 39)
Origin	U.S.
Genres	Hip hop, turntablism
Occupations	DJ, record producer
Instruments	Turntables, sampler
Years active	1993–present
Associated acts	Ozomatli, Jurassic 5, DJ Shadow
Website	http://www.cutchemist.com/

Lucas MacFadden (born October 4, 1972),^[1] better known as Cut Chemist, is an American DJ and record producer. He is a former member of the funk Latin band Ozomatli, and of hip hop group Jurassic 5. He has collaborated with fellow turntablist DJ Shadow on a number of projects.

Career[link]

Cut Chemist became known through the Los Angeles-based rap group Unity Committee, and debuted on vinyl on the B-side of Unity Committee's 1993 single, "Unified Rebelution". The track, "Lesson 4: The Radio" was an ovation of Double Dee and Steinski's "Lessons 1-3."

Preceding the vinyl release, Unity Committee formed Jurassic 5, along with another group, Rebels of Rhythm. Cut Chemist contributed avidly to the group, adding "Lesson 6: The Lecture" to Jurassic 5's eponymous EP, and co-producing the entirety of the record. Between then and other releases, he explored remixing alongside DJ Shadow and Liquid Liquid, and performed doing outside work (sampling and scratching for Less Than Jake, and appearing with Ozomatli). From late 1996 to early 1997, Cut Chemist recorded his album debut, Live at Future Primitive Sound Session, with Shortkut of Invisibl Skratch Piklz.

Cut Chemist did not appear on their latest album Feedback. In May 2006, he indicated to Billboard that he had left the group.^[2]

with J5 in Germany

Cut Chemist's first full-length solo album, The Audience's Listening, was released on July 11, 2006.^[3] The album includes the pre-released song "The Garden", which features a bossa nova style, vocals from Astrud Gilberto's Brazilian song "Berimbau", and berimbau instrumentals.

The song "The Audience Is Listening Theme Song" from The Audience's Listening has been featured in a 2G Apple iPod nano advertisement.

More recently, Cut Chemist has opened for Shakira in 2007 on the European leg of her Oral Fixation Tour, and at the press conference held by car-maker SEAT to promote their sponsorship of the shows.

Cut Chemist made an appearance in the 2007 comedy Juno, playing a high school chemistry teacher, playing on his "chemist" stage-name. His logo was present in this scene in the form of a large pair of prop scissors suspended over a beaker.

Cut Chemist joined DJ Shadow on a world wide tour to support their new mix The Hard Sell beginning in early 2008. Kid Koala opened for them. Dates included Dallas, New York, San Francisco, Melbourne, Toronto, Vancouver, London, Hamburg and Paris among others.

In October 2008, Cut Chemist's video for the song "What's the Altitude" featuring Hymnal was removed for violating a WMG copyright.^[4]

Cut Chemist is featured in the award-winning documentary This is the Life, chronicling the music movement which was birthed at The Good Life Cafe in South Central Los Angeles. The Good Life is the open-mic workshop where he first performed with Unity Committee in the early 1990s and launched Jurassic 5.

Most recently, Cut Chemist was featured in the film Up In The Air under his name Cut Chemist as the conference DJ who introduces Young MC.

Discography[link]

Releases[link]

• Brainfreeze (CD)
• Live at Future Primitive Sound Session Version 1.1 (CD)
• Product Placement (CD)
• Brain Freeze Original Sound Track 1979
• The Litmus Test (CD)
• Rare Equations (2xCD)
• The Audience's Listening (CD)
• The Hard Sell (CD)

Remixes[link]

• The Re-Return Of The Original Art Form (12")
• Midnight In A Perfect World (12")
• Midnight In A Perfect World / The Number Song (12")
• The Remix EP (12")
• Midnight In A Perfect World / Number Song (CD5")
• Number Song / Painkiller (12")
• A2G EP (12")
• Cut Chemist Suite (12")
• Remixes (12")
• Super Bowl Sundae (12")
• The Art Of War: Who Dares Wins (2xCD)
• Now, Listen! (CD)
• Urban Theory Presents...Meltdown (2x12")
• Urban Theory Presents: Meltdown (2xCD)
• One To Grow On (CD)
• Herbal Blend (2x12")
• Solid Steel Presents The Herbaliser - Herbal Blend (CD)
• The Document II (3x12")
• The Document II (CD)
• They Mixes (12")
• Biz Markie ripped up megamix (7')

Scratches[link]

• The Funky Precedent (CD)
• Later That Day (2x12")
• Street Signs (CD)

Production[link]

• Jurassic 5 EP (2x12")
• Jurassic 5 EP (12")
• Concrete Schoolyard (12")
• Improvise / Lesson 6: The Lecture (12")
• Jayou / Action Satisfaction (12")
• Jayou / Without A Doubt (12")
• A2G (12")
• A2G EP (2x12")
• Jurassic 5 (LP)
• Nia (3x12")
• The Funky Precedent (CD)
• The Litmus Test (CD)
• Alphabet Aerobics -Blackalicious (12")

DJ mixes[link]

• Brainfreeze (CD)
• Product Placement
• The Litmus Test (CD)
• The Hard Sell (CD)
• The Hard Sell (Encore) (CD)

Appears on[link]

• Got What You Need (12")
• The 5 O'Clock Shadow EP (12")
• My Vinyl Weighs A Ton (CD)
• My Vinyl Weighs a Ton (2x12")
• Tale of Five Cities (12")
• 2001: A Rhyme Odyssey (3x12")
• 2001: A Rhyme Odyssey (CD)
• No Categories 3:: A Ubiquity Compilation (2xCD)
• Embrace the Chaos (CD)
• Blazing Arrow (2x12") by Blackalicious
• Blazing Arrow (CD)
• The Private Press (Limited Edition) (2xCD)
• Freestyle (Steinski's Additive Remix) (12")
• Later That Day... (CD)
• Make Yourself (CD)
• Chemical Calisthenics (CD)
• Jennifer's Body

Tracks appear on[link]

• Audio Alchemy (Experiments In Beat Reconstruction) (2x12")
• Audio Alchemy (Experiments In Beat Reconstruction) (CD)
• Scratchmasters Volume #3 (CD)
• Return Of The D.J. Vol. 1 (CD)
• Return Of The DJ Vol. 1 (2x12")
• Deep Concentration (2xCD)
• The Funky Precedent (CD)
• Urban Revolutions The Future Primitive Sound Collective (3x12")
• Bunky's Pick (CD5")
• Bunky's Pick (12")
• Product Placement (2x12")
• Slinky Presents Superclub DJ's (2xCD)
• In The Mix / Live (12")
• Later That Day... (CD)
• The Ultimate Lessons (2x12")
• The Ultimate Lessons (CD)
• The Ultimate Lessons 2 (2x12")
• The Ultimate Lessons 2 (CD)
• Nat King Cole RE: Generations (CD)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Cut Chemist
• Cut Chemist at the Internet Movie Database
• Synthesis Magazine interview

DJ Shadow
Background information
Birth name	Joshua Paul Davis
Also known as	Josh Davis
Born	(1972-06-29) June 29, 1972 (age 39) San Jose, California, U.S.
Origin	Davis, California, U.S.
Genres	Hip hop, Hyphy, Plunderphonics, instrumental hip hop, trip hop, turntablism, electronic
Occupations	Producer, DJ
Instruments	Keyboards, turntables, sampler, synthesizer
Years active	1989–present
Labels	Mo'Wax Quannum Projects Solesides MCA Universal Verve
Associated acts	UNKLE The Quannum Collective Cut Chemist
Website	djshadow.com

Joshua Paul "Josh" Davis (born June 29, 1972)^[1][2] better known as DJ Shadow is an American music producer, DJ and songwriter. He is considered a prominent figure in the development of instrumental hip hop and first gained notice with the release of his highly acclaimed debut album Endtroducing....., which was the first album to be recorded using only sampled sounds.^[3] He has an exceptionally large personal record collection, with over 60,000 records.^[4] He is the cousin of singer and guitarist Richie Kotzen.

History[link]

Early years[link]

DJ Shadow was experimenting with a four-track recorder while in high school in Davis, California, and began his music career as a disc jockey for the University of California, Davis campus radio station KDVS. During this period he was significant in developing the experimental hip hop style associated with the London-based Mo' Wax record label. His early singles, 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. Andy Pemberton, a music journalist writing for Mixmag, coined the term "trip hop" in June 1994 to describe Shadow's "In/Flux" single and similar tracks being spun in London clubs at the time.^[5] Though his music is hard to categorize, his early contributions were certainly important for alternative hip hop. He cited groups such as Kurtis Mantronik, Steinski, and Prince Paul as influences on his sample-based sound, further claiming that "lyrics (...) were confining, too specific". His music rarely features more than short clips of voices or vocal work.^[6]

During 1991-1992, DJ Shadow remixes were released on Hollywood BASIC, a short-lived rap/hip-hop subsidiary label of Hollywood Records. Notable amongst these is a 1992 compilation release titled "BASIC Beats Sampler",^[7] which features a remix of The Real Deal, a song by Lifers' Group, as well as a 12-plus-minute "Mega Mix" of the rest of the album, including tracks by west-coast underground hip-hop act, Raw Fusion and east-coast acts, Organized Konfusion and Zimbabwe Legit. Also in 1992, Shadow contributed scratching and production work to Sleeping with the Enemy, the controversial second release by rapper Paris.

Early in 1993, Shadow was a part of the creation of the Solesides underground hip-hop label, in conjunction with Blackalicious and Lyrics Born (whose stage name at the time was Asia Born). The first 12" release on this new imprint was titled "Entropy",^[8] with the A-side containing the Asia Born track "Send Them" and a dub rendition of the DJ Shadow track "Count and Estimate", and the entire B-side consisting of the 17-plus-minute title track. Rapper Gift of Gab is featured in the version of "Count and Estimate" that appears in Entropy. Shadow continued to participate in releases on the Solesides label for years to come, until the label was disbanded in 1996 in favour of Quannum Projects.

Also in 1993, Mo' Wax's James Lavelle contacted Shadow about releasing "In/Flux" on the fledgling imprint. The association with Mo' Wax was a productive one; his tracks "In/Flux" and "Lost and Found" made their way onto a number of releases over the next few years. Shadow also worked with DJ Krush during this period. On a 1995 visit to the Mo' Wax studios in London, England, Shadow was recruited to perform scratches on a James Lavelle and Tim Goldsworthy mix of the Massive Attack song Karmacoma.^[9]

[edit] Endtroducing.....

Shadow's first full-length work, Endtroducing....., was released in late 1996 to critical acclaim. Endtroducing would go on to make the Guinness World Records book for "First Completely Sampled Album" in 2001.^[10] The only pieces of equipment Shadow used to produce the album were the AKAI MPC60 12-bit sampling drum machine, a pair of turntables and a borrowed-by-visiting Pro Tools setup from an early adopter of the technology, Dan "The Automator" Nakamura. In November 2006 Time magazine named it one of its "All-Time" 100 best albums.^[11]

[edit] Preemptive Strike

In 1998 Shadow released Preemptive Strike, a compilation of early singles. Later that year, he produced Psyence Fiction, the debut album by Unkle, a long-time Mo' Wax production team that featured guest appearances including Thom Yorke (Radiohead), Richard Ashcroft (The Verve), Mike D (Beastie Boys), Kool G. Rap, Jason Newsted (Metallica) among others.

[edit] Dark Days

Around 2000 he produced the score for the documentary Dark Days filmed by British director Marc Singer. This film is about a community of transients who live underground in a subway tunnel. It has six award wins in various competitions.^[12]

[edit] The Private Press

Nearly six years after his debut production album, his second album, The Private Press, was released in June 2002. In the same year^{[clarification needed]}, the movie Scratch (2001, Doug Pray) was released to DVD with DJ Shadow appearing several times throughout the movie. A video for his track "Six Days" was also released in 2002, directed by Wong Kar-wai. The album was mixed by Jim Abbiss.

[edit] In Tune and on Time

In 2004, Shadow's first feature-length DVD, In Tune and on Time, was released. It features a live performance in London that emphasizes visuals.

[edit] The Outsider

The Outsider album was released on 18 September 2006. A special edition CD box set was also released containing The Outsider, the album on CD and a DVD entitled Tour Visuals. The Outsider, which prominently featured several artists from the local San Francisco Bay Area hyphy hip hop movement, got a mixed welcome among Shadow's fans. Responding to criticisms, the DJ/producer explained on his blog why he made no apologies: "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."^[13][14] DJ Shadow has also collaborated with fellow DJ Cut Chemist. Together they have created three popular mixtapes entitled Brainfreeze, Product Placement, and the recent The Hard Sell. These mixes fuse jazz, funk, and soul in the framework of a cohesive concept. He has also collaborated with several other artists, including Blackalicious, Zack de la Rocha, Keak Da Sneak, Mos Def, David Banner, and Dr. Octagon, an alter ego of Kool Keith.

In 2006, he signed a deal with Universal Records. DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist toured in 2008 in support of their mixtape The Hard Sell with Kid Koala opening for them.

[edit] Diminishing Returns

Diminishing Returns was a 2-hour DJ Mix originally broadcast on BBC Radio 1 on March 29, 2003. It was released in 2003 on CD in a pressing limited to 1000 copies on the Reconstruction Productions label.^[15] Reconstruction Productions reissued the album in 2009 with a sticker stating "official, last chance limited edition, re-release".^[16]

[edit] The Less You Know, the Better

During Shadow's Outsider 2007 tour, he was spotted filming with Dean Fernando (aka "DINO") as reported on Shadow/Quannum fansite Solesides. On April 1, 2009, DJ Shadow announced on his Facebook page that he was working on a Diminishing Returns re-release.

On March 7, 2009, Shadow announced that he was working on new music. Though no release date was given, he assured, "It will sound different from the last one."^[17] DJ Shadow released a track from the new album called "Def Surrounds Us" as a preview. During his gig in Antwerp in August 2010, he played some tracks from the new album, although he stated that it was not yet ready and that he would continue working toward having it ready in time for his 2011 tour.

On May 10, 2011, Shadow confirmed via his Facebook page and official website that his new album, titled The Less You Know, the Better, was finished and that it would be released the following September on Verve/Universal.^[18] The same day, he also released a EP called I Gotta Rokk featuring remixed tracks from the forthcoming album. A second single "I'm Excited" was also released, featuring Afrikan Boy, on July 29, 2011. However the single was pulled because of copyright infringement.^[19] The infringement also delayed the album's release. Another song from the album, titled "Warning Call," featuring Tom Vek, was released on 7 September 2011, and was featured as a free download on the official DJ Shadow Facebook page. Shadow announced on September 30, 2011 via Twitter that The Less You Know, the Better would be released on a 3xUSB format.

The artwork for this album, the associated singles and promotional material was done by Tony Papesh, an artist from San Francisco, California.^[20] The album was mixed by Jim Abbiss

Studio and equipment[link]

The book Behind the Beat documents Shadow's home studio (named "Reconstruction") through photos and a brief description (as of 2005).^[21] It is "nestled within a leafy San Francisco suburb"^[21] and Shadow apparently moved to the area "to be closer to the local record store".^[21] It also states that "Shadow only keeps a small selection of vinyl at home with the rest occupying storage units around town".^[21] His equipment as of 2005, according to Behind the Beat, consists of two Akai MPC 3000s and a Korg Triton.^[21] His album Endtroducing was "created on an AKAI MPC60 and an ADAT".^[21]

Sampling[link]

DJ Shadow's reputation is largely built on the skill with which he manipulates samples, taking rare and unheard pieces of music and reworking them into parts and phrases for his songs. Many of his tracks feature dozens of samples from a wide array of styles and influences including rock, soul, funk, experimental, electronic and jazz. Shadow famously sampled American composer David Axelrod twice: the piano in "Midnight In A Perfect World" from 1996's Endtroducing was originally recorded for Axelrod's "The Human Abstract"; and on his collaboration with DJ Krush, "Duality", sampling Axelrod's "The Warnings" (Part 1). Although Shadow currently uses fewer samples than on his earlier albums, several examples feature on 2006 album, The Outsider. His collaboration with David Banner, "Seein' Thangs", features a synthesizer and vocals from Cecilia's "Crimson Red" and "Outsider Intro" includes an excerpt from Ron Geesin's "Concrete Line Up" from the 1973 album, As He Stands.^[22]

Discography[link]

• Endtroducing..... (1996)
• Preemptive Strike (1998)
• The Private Press (2002)
• The Outsider (2006)
• The Less You Know, the Better (2011)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: DJ Shadow

• Official website
• Quannum Projects
• Solesides
• DJ Shadow discography at Discogs

Jurassic 5
Background information
Origin	Los Angeles, California
Genres	Alternative hip hop
Years active	1993–2007
Labels	TVT Interscope JVC
Associated acts	Ozomatli
Website	http://www.jurassic5.com/
Past members
Akil Zaakir Mark 7even DJ Nu-Mark Chali 2na Cut Chemist

Jurassic 5 was an American alternative hip hop group formed in 1993 from members of two previous groups, Rebels of Rhythm and Unity Committee^[1] by rappers Charles Stewart (Chali 2na), Dante Givens (Akil), Courtenay Henderson (Zaakir), Marc Stuart (Mark 7even), and disc jockeys Mark Potsic (DJ Nu-Mark) and Lucas Macfadden (Cut Chemist).^[2] The six piece crew that was formed, came out of the Los Angeles, California Venue called "Good Life". ^[3] The group broke up in 2007,^[4] shortly after releasing their fourth LP Feedback, citing "Musical Differences" ^[5]

History[link]

Jurassic 5 debuted nationally in 1995 from TVT Records with their first single, "Unified Rebeluation". ^[6] Jurassic 5 released their first record, Jurassic 5 EP, in 1997. After Jurassic 5 put out their first record it, "cemented their position in the 1990s alternative hip hop movement, alongside artists such as Company Flow, Black Star and Kool Keith. ^[7] The group later signed to Interscope Records and the EP was repackaged with additional tracks and released in December 1998 as the full-length, eponymous debut album entitled Jurassic 5.^[4]

This was followed by their second album Quality Control, which peaked at #43 on the Billboard 200.^[8]

In 2002, they released their third album, Power In Numbers which peaked at #15 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Jurassic 5 eventually toured without Cut Chemist,^[9] who left the group to pursue a solo career.^[10] The remaining five members released their fourth album, Feedback, on July 25, 2006. The album peaked at #15 on the Billboard 200.^[8]

In other media[link]

Jurassic 5's music has been used in several video games. In 2000, "Jayou" was featured in Grind Session. Also in 2000, Jet Set Radio was released in North America including the track "Improvise" from the album Quality Control - though it only appears on the US pressing. All other pressings of the album have the track Concrete And Clay instead - and an instrumental version of the same song. The following year, the track "Great Expectations" from the same album was also included in Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX.^[11] The song "In The House" from Feedback was featured in NBA Live 06.^[12] while "Red Hot" was featured in SSX On Tour.^[13] In 2003, "A Day At The Races" was included in Tony Hawk's Underground. The song "What's Golden" from Power In Numbers was featured in ATV Offroad Fury 2.

Breakup[link]

The group split in 2007.^[14] Reasons for the break-up have been attributed to disagreements among members of the group.^[15]

Hamburg/Germany

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Singles[link]

Extended Plays[link]

• Unified Rebelution (1995)
• Jurassic 5 EP (1997)

Miscellaneous[link]

• Jet Grind Radio Music Sampler (2000)
• Jurassick! (Freestyles and Rarities) (2003, Interscope Records)
• Pre-Historik Rarities (2003)
• The Inside Track (2003, Interscope Records)
• Linguistics (2006)

References[link]