Whilst DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist have each been regular visitors to Australian shores in recent years, The Hard Sell tour represented the first opportunity for Australian audiences to catch the turntable maestros live on stage together. As such, a capacity crowd at Metro City welcomed the duo right on 11.30pm last Friday. The excitement was palpable, and the duo knew it, waltzing down to the front of stage and saluting the crowd.

Then, it was straight down to business. Settling down into their respective positions amongst the 8 turntables, 2 loop pedals and numerous mixers and add-ons, the duo opted for a mid-tempo introduction before working in Led Zeppelin’s Stairway To Heaven. Armed with an impressive visual show to complement their technical wizardry, Shadow and Cut Chemist proceeded to work their way through an unsurprisingly eclectic selection of tracks.

As well as the obligatory hip hop selections – De La Soul’s En Focus, Del Tha Funkee Homosapien’s Mr Dobalina, Digable Planets’ Rebirth Of Slick (Cool Like Dat) – the duo worked in some classic funk and breaks – the much sampled break Apache and Quincy Jones’ Summer In The City – as well as some vintage rock – Jefferson Airplane’s Don’t You Want Somebody To Love and The Doors’ Break On Through. Also worked into the mix were a few vintage country licks and some pure pop to keep the non-purists happy – Aaliyah’s Try Again, for example, got a rousing reception.

While Shadow and Cut Chemist exemplified impeccable mixing and juggling skills throughout the set, no doubt due in part to the extensive Northern Hemisphere touring the duo did on The Hard Sell tour in 2007, it must be said that the entire set had somewhat of a muted feel to it. I felt that the large Friday night crowd present at Metro City was in need of something of little more upbeat and dynamic than what was provided. It’s all well and good to produce a show that is technically second to none, but the underlying aim is to entertain. In this respect, I felt that The Hard Sell was a good show, as opposed to a great show. And when you are speaking of such luminaries as Shadow and Cut Chemist, on stage together, that is a little disappointing.

Moreover, in a world where music from all corners of the globe is now far more accessible than was previously the case, I was a little underwhelmed by the selection of tracks chosen by Shadow and Cut Chemist. The selection was eclectic, but by no means groundbreaking or outrageous. At a time when Madlib is investigating the Indian music scene and his brother (*Oh No*) is checking out Turkish, Lebanese, Greek and Italian psyche funk, it seems a little passé to be dropping Led Zeppelin, Aaliyah and The Doors. To be fair, the fact that Shadow and Cut Chemist were able to produce a set sourced entirely from 45s is impressive, but I was hoping for a broader selection of tunes and samples. As the live sets of Keb Darge indicate, the range of tracks released on 45s knows no bounds.

After endearing themselves to the crowd with some trickery on portable turntables, Shadow and Cut Chemist ended the main set around 1.15am. Returning for a brief encore, in which they thanked the crowd profusely and harked back to their Brainfreeze release to round off the night, Shadow and Cut Chemist walked off the stage around 1.30am to the applause of an audience which was clearly appreciative, but not overwhelmed. All in all, a good set, as opposed to a great set. Let’s hope the duo returns soon for a truly great combined show. God knows they have the ability to provide one.