I've been in two minds about 'The Private Press' for some time now. Impressed with previous DJ Shadow works 'Endtroducing', the 'Dark Days' soundtrack, and his work with the Mowax UNKLE project, my expectations of this new LP were high from the start.

Fixed Income is a lot like Shadow's debut album 'Endtroducing', with jazz instrumentation, sad and bluesy electric guitar, and obvious hip hop beats, and when some classical harpsichord drops in to trace the melody line two and a half minutes in, it's a true highlight.

Walkie Talkie has a cute introduction, but those easily offended may blanch at the explicit language, and again through the road rage inspired Mashin' On The Motorway, which could easily become as frustrating as being trapped in traffic surrounded by angry and abusive motorists. It's little wonder the following track Blood On The Motorway begins gently like a healing self-help tape complete with breathing instructions. The track does change to become a slow piano chord based lament, but in its entirety is like an odd mix of Trapezoid, Endorphin and Single Gun Theory.

In stark contrast to the angrier moments of 'The Private Press', Giving Up The Ghost is a delicate, layered experience, morphing across its running time from an impressive Moby-meets-Penguin Cafe Orchestra type hybrid, to a signature DJ Shadow trip-hop drum and bass track. Six Days adds an island feel to the drums, but also slips in a sad undercurrent which is kept up through the cinematic Mongrel Meets His Maker.

There's some pure headphone experimentation through Monosylabik, but eventually there are so many sources, samples, blips and clips cutting in and out, it becomes a little hard to follow.

'The Private Press' has DJ Shadow showing off his technical wizardry, and has some adventurous and diverse tracks, but as a whole, the album is nowhere near as cohesive as 'Endtroducing', and falls short of DJ Shadow's usual high standard.

Steven Hocking

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