Endtroducing.....

{{Infobox album

| name = Endtroducing.....

| type = studio

| artist = DJ Shadow

| cover = Endtroducingcover.jpg

| alt = Two men look through vinyl records at a record store.

| released = {{start date|1996|09|16}}

| recorded = 1994–1996

| studio = The Glue Factory (San Francisco)

| genre =

| length = 63:23

| label = Mo' Wax

| producer = DJ Shadow

| next_title = Preemptive Strike

| next_year = 1998

| misc = {{Singles

| name = Endtroducing.....

| type = studio

| single1 = Midnight in a Perfect World

| single1date = September 2, 1996

| single2 = Stem

| single2date = October 28, 1996

| single3 = What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 1)

| single3date = January 12, 1998

| single4 = The Number Song" / "Painkiller

| single4date = February 23, 1998

}}

Endtroducing..... is the debut studio album by American music producer DJ Shadow, released on September 16, 1996, by Mo' Wax. It is an instrumental hip hop work composed almost entirely of samples from vinyl records. DJ Shadow produced Endtroducing over two years, using an Akai MPC60 sampler and little other equipment. He edited and layered samples to create new tracks of varying moods and tempos.

In the United Kingdom, where DJ Shadow had already established himself as a rising act, Endtroducing received praise from music journalists at the time of its release, and reached the top 20 of the UK Albums Chart. It was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry. Mo' Wax issued four singles from the album, including the chart hits "Midnight in a Perfect World" and "Stem". It took considerably longer for Endtroducing to find success in the United States. After promoting the album and returning to his hometown of Davis, California, DJ Shadow devoted his time to creating new music. During this period, interest in Endtroducing began to build among the American music press, and it peaked at number 37 on the US Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart.

Endtroducing was ranked highly on various lists of the best albums of 1996, and has been acclaimed by critics as one of the greatest albums of the 1990s. It is considered a landmark recording in instrumental hip hop, with DJ Shadow's sampling techniques and arrangements leaving a lasting influence. In 2020, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Endtroducing 329th on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Background

File:DJ Shadow and James Lavelle.jpg label head James Lavelle in 1997|alt=Two men stand behind a set of turntables in 1997.]]

As a high school student, DJ Shadow experimented with creating music from samples using a four-track recorder,{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/dj-shadow-goes-public-248416/ |title=DJ Shadow Goes Public |magazine=Rolling Stone |location=New York |date=May 24, 2002 |access-date=March 20, 2013 |last=Krinsky |first=David |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614094320/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/dj-shadow-goes-public-20020524 |archive-date=June 14, 2013 |url-status=live}} inspired by sample-based music such as It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988) by the hip hop group Public Enemy.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.solesides.com/dj-shadow-mdj-shadow-keyboard-october-1997.html |title=DJ Shadow + Akai MPC = History |magazine=Keyboard |location=New York |volume=23 |issue=10 |date=October 1997 |access-date=March 16, 2013 |last=Rule |first=Greg |pages=51–60 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130223043722/http://solesides.com/winblad/shadowkeyboard1097.html |archive-date=February 23, 2013 |url-status=live}} He began his music career in 1989 as a disc jockey for the University of California, Davis campus radio station KDVS.{{cite news |url=http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/05.23.02/dj-shadow-0221.html |title=Made in the Shade |newspaper=Metro |location=San Jose |date=May 23–29, 2002 |access-date=March 16, 2013 |last=Inoue |first=Todd |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110130085533/http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/05.23.02/dj-shadow-0221.html |archive-date=January 30, 2011 |url-status=live}} His KDVS work impressed A&R representative Dave "Funken" Klein, who signed him to the Hollywood Basic label to produce music and remixes. DJ Shadow's output for Hollywood Basic, including the 1993 single "Entropy" and his work with the SoleSides crew, brought him to the attention of English musician James Lavelle, who signed DJ Shadow to his Mo' Wax label.{{sfn|Taylor|2004|p=[https://archive.org/details/atoxofalternativ00tayl/page/87 87]}}

DJ Shadow's first two singles for Mo' Wax, "In/Flux" (1993) and "Lost and Found (S.F.L.)" (1994), utilized samples from "used-bin" vinyl records, blending elements of hip hop, funk, soul, jazz, rock, and ambient music.{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/dj-shadow-mn0000949820 |title=DJ Shadow |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=March 16, 2013 |last=Cooper |first=Sean |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130421113512/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/dj-shadow-mn0000949820 |archive-date=April 21, 2013 |url-status=dead}} The singles were acclaimed by the British music press, and soon DJ Shadow and other Mo' Wax artists came to be viewed as leading practitioners of a nascent genre that the press termed "trip hop"{{sfn|Wilder|2005|p=66}}{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/jun/12/mo-wax-james-lavelle-trip-hop |title=Mo' Wax after 21 years: James Lavelle goes for a trip-hop down memory lane |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=June 12, 2013 |access-date=May 30, 2021 |last=Muggs |first=Joe}} – a name coined by Mixmag journalist Andy Pemberton in June 1994 to describe "In/Flux" and similar tracks being played in London clubs.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/aug/25/origins-of-music-genres-hip-hop |title=Genre busting: the origin of music categories |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=August 25, 2011 |access-date=May 29, 2021 |last=Matos |first=Michaelangelo}}{{cite magazine |url=http://www.mixmag.net/words/from-the-archives/classic-features/june-1994---trip-hop |title=Trip Hop |magazine=Mixmag |location=London |volume=1 |issue=37 |date=June 1994 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |last=Pemberton |first=Andy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130411022256/http://mixmag.net/words/from-the-archives/classic-features/june-1994---trip-hop |archive-date=April 11, 2013 |url-status=dead}} In the summer of 1994, DJ Shadow started producing his first album.{{cite news |url=https://www.sfweekly.com/music/dj-shadow-reviews-his-own-discography/ |title=DJ Shadow Reviews His Own Discography |newspaper=SF Weekly |location=San Francisco |date=September 8, 2011 |access-date=May 30, 2021 |last=Mlynar |first=Phillip}} He completed around half of the record, but Mo' Wax opted to instead issue the finished music as a single – "What Does Your Soul Look Like" – the following year.{{sfn|Wilder|2005|p=99}} As a result, DJ Shadow began work on his debut album anew. He was intent on capturing the same feel of his three Mo' Wax singles, and chose the title Endtroducing..... for the album as "it signified the fourth and final chapter in a series of pieces that I was doing for Mo' Wax with a certain sound, a certain tone, a certain atmosphere."{{cite magazine |url=https://xlr8r.com/features/rewind-dj-shadow/ |title=Rewind: DJ Shadow |magazine=XLR8R |location=San Francisco |date=September 27, 2012 |access-date=March 16, 2013 |last=Fader |first=Lainna |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121214192449/http://www.xlr8r.com/features/2012/09/rewind-dj-shadow |archive-date=December 14, 2012 |url-status=live}}

Production

File:Akai MPC60.jpg was used heavily in the production of Endtroducing.|alt=An electronic musical sampler and drum machine.]]

DJ Shadow began production on Endtroducing in 1994 in his California apartment, before moving to the Glue Factory, the San Francisco home studio of his colleague Dan the Automator.{{cite AV media notes |title=Endtroducing..... |others=DJ Shadow |publisher=Island Records |edition=deluxe |year=2005 |id=0602498286821 |type=liner notes}} Shadow strove to create an entirely sample-based album. His setup was minimal, with only three main pieces of equipment: an Akai MPC60 sampler, a Technics SL-1200 turntable and an Alesis ADAT tape recorder. He used the MPC60 for almost all composition.{{cite web |url=http://news.beatport.com/blog/2012/08/14/dj-shadow-week-an-exclusive-interview-i-feel-like-ive-kind-of-done-a-lot-fo/ |title=The exclusive interview; 'I feel like I've done a lot for the MPC' |publisher=Beatport |date=August 14, 2012 |access-date=March 16, 2013 |last=Taylor |first=Ken |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021171416/http://news.beatport.com/blog/2012/08/14/dj-shadow-week-an-exclusive-interview-i-feel-like-ive-kind-of-done-a-lot-fo/ |archive-date=October 21, 2012 |url-status=dead}} DJ Shadow bought it in 1992 at the suggestion of DJ Stretch Armstrong, who recommended it as a more advanced alternative to the "industry standard" sampler at the time, the E-mu SP-1200; according to DJ Shadow, the SP-1200 "had been around for like four years, the sound was well established, and it had some real audio limitations in terms of the bit rate and stuff".

DJ Shadow sampled vinyl albums and singles accumulated from his trips to Rare Records, a record shop in his native Sacramento, where he spent several hours each day searching for music.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/sep/02/dj-shadow-soundtrack-my-life |title=DJ Shadow: soundtrack of my life |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=September 2, 2012 |access-date=March 16, 2013 |last=Grundy |first=Gareth |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130225185720/http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2012/sep/02/dj-shadow-soundtrack-my-life |archive-date=February 25, 2013 |url-status=live}} His routine is depicted in the 2001 documentary film Scratch.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/80266/palm-gobbles-up-dj-film-scratch |title=Palm Gobbles Up DJ Film 'Scratch' |magazine=Billboard |location=New York |date=March 26, 2001 |access-date=March 17, 2013}} The Endtroducing album cover is a photograph taken at Rare Records by B Plus, showing producer Chief Xcel and rapper Lyrics Born (the latter wearing a wig), who like DJ Shadow were members of the SoleSides collective.{{cite web |url=https://medium.com/12edit/dj-shadow-entroducing-story-behind-the-artwork-542872244c02 |title=DJ Shadow — Entroducing. Story behind the artwork |website=12edit |date=November 6, 2017 |access-date=January 4, 2020 |last=Palladev |first=George}}{{sfn|Katz|2012|p=194}} ABB Records founder Beni B (wearing a baseball cap) is also seen in the full version of the photograph, which appears in the album's liner notes.

Endtroducing samples music of various genres, including jazz, funk, and psychedelia, as well as films and interviews.{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2012/11/17/165145271/dj-shadow-on-sampling-as-a-collage-of-mistakes |title=DJ Shadow On Sampling As A 'Collage Of Mistakes' |publisher=NPR |date=November 17, 2012 |access-date=March 16, 2013 |last=Raz |first=Guy |author-link=Guy Raz |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514102427/http://www.npr.org/2012/11/17/165145271/dj-shadow-on-sampling-as-a-collage-of-mistakes |archive-date=May 14, 2013 |url-status=live}} DJ Shadow programmed, chopped, and layered samples to create tracks.{{cite news |url=http://www.sfbg.com/39/38/x_second_time.html |title=Second Time Around |newspaper=San Francisco Bay Guardian |date=June 22–28, 2005 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |last=Wang |first=Oliver |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924120212/http://www.sfbg.com/39/38/x_second_time.html |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |url-status=dead}} He opted to sample more obscure selections, making it a rule to avoid sampling popular material. Though he also used samples of prominent artists such as Björk and Metallica,{{cite magazine |url=http://www.solesides.com/dj-shadow-entroducing-bam-1997.html |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing… |magazine=BAM |location=San Francisco |date=April 4, 1997 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |last=Sullivan |first=James |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413192626/http://solesides.com/winblad/shadowbam040497.html |archive-date=April 13, 2014 |url-status=live}} DJ Shadow said that "if I use something obvious, it's usually only to break my own rules." Minor vocal contributions were provided by Lyrics Born and another SoleSides member, rapper Gift of Gab,{{cite web |url=https://thequietus.com/articles/05112-dj-shadow-interview |title=Megadef: DJ Shadow Interviewed |website=The Quietus |date=October 18, 2010 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |last=Doran |first=John |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630114800/http://thequietus.com/articles/05112-dj-shadow-interview |archive-date=June 30, 2013 |url-status=live}} as well as DJ Shadow's then-girlfriend Lisa Haugen.{{cite podcast |url=https://songexploder.net/dj-shadow |title=DJ Shadow |website=Song Exploder |date=December 8, 2016 |access-date=May 29, 2021 |last=Hirway |first=Hrishikesh |author-link=Hrishikesh Hirway}} He finished recording Endtroducing in early 1996.

Composition

{{Listen |filename=Midnight in a Perfect World DJ Shadow.ogg |title="Midnight in a Perfect World" |pos=left |description=The low-tempo track "Midnight in a Perfect World" establishes a nocturnal mood through its diverse array of samples.{{cite web |url=https://www.popmatters.com/djshadow-endtroducingdeluxe-2495879288.html |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing... [Deluxe Edition] |website=PopMatters |date=June 9, 2005 |access-date=March 25, 2013 |last=O'Neil |first=Tim |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116154731/https://www.popmatters.com/djshadow-endtroducingdeluxe-2495879288.html |archive-date=January 16, 2021 |url-status=dead}}

}}

DJ Shadow describes his albums as "really varied", and said of Endtroducing: "I feel like 'Organ Donor' sounds nothing like 'The Number Song' which sounds nothing like 'Midnight' and on and on."{{cite magazine |url=http://www.timeoutshanghai.com/features/Bars__Clubs-Nightlife_features/4109/DJ-Shadow-interview.html |title=DJ Shadow interview |magazine=Time Out Shanghai |date=October 18, 2011 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |last=Gaskin |first=Sam |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130131083904/http://www.timeoutshanghai.com/features/Bars__Clubs-Nightlife_features/4109/DJ-Shadow-interview.html |archive-date=January 31, 2013 |url-status=dead}} He said he was often depressed during the production of the album and that his "feelings of self-doubt and self-esteem come through in the music."{{cite news |url=http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/music/other_stories/documents/04788980.asp |title=Re-Endtroducing . . . |newspaper=The Boston Phoenix |date=July 1–7, 2005 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |last=Micallef |first=Ken |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121123062621/http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/music/other_stories/documents/04788980.asp |archive-date=November 23, 2012 |url-status=dead}}{{sfn|Wilder|2005|p=86}}

Endtroducing is opened by "Best Foot Forward", a sound collage of record scratches and hip hop vocal samples. "Building Steam with a Grain of Salt" is built around a looped piano line sampled from Jeremy Storch's "I Feel a New Shadow",{{sfn|Katz|2012|pp=196–198}} with various other musical elements entering throughout the track, including samples of an interview with drummer George Marsh,{{sfn|Katz|2012|pp=196–198}} a women's choir, bass fills, electronically altered drum kicks, and funk guitar.{{cite web |url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/8025/DJ-Shadow-Endtroducing...../ |title=DJ Shadow – Endtroducing..... |publisher=Sputnikmusic |date=June 30, 2006 |access-date=March 22, 2013 |last=Fisher |first=Tyler |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630085744/http://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/8025/DJ-Shadow-Endtroducing...../ |archive-date=June 30, 2013 |url-status=live}} "The Number Song" uses multiple drum breaks and vocal samples of count-offs.{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ai0EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT23 |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing... |magazine=CMJ New Music Monthly |location=New York |issue=43 |date=March 1997 |access-date=March 22, 2013 |last=Wolk |first=Douglas |author-link=Douglas Wolk |page=23}} "Changeling" deviates from the previous uptempo tracks, incorporating new-age sounds and gradually building toward a "sublimely spacey" coda. It segues into the first of three "transmission" interludes placed throughout the album, each featuring a sample from the 1987 John Carpenter film Prince of Darkness.{{cite news |url=http://www.weeklywire.com/ww/09-20-99/boston_music_1.html |title=Hipocalypse Now |newspaper=The Boston Phoenix |date=September 20, 1999 |access-date=March 22, 2013 |last=Pappademas |first=Alex |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131218084457/http://www.weeklywire.com/ww/09-20-99/boston_music_1.html |archive-date=December 18, 2013 |url-status=live}} "What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 4)" layers wordless chants over a looped bass groove, creating what Paste{{'}}s Mark Richardson describes as an "uneasy" techno soundscape.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/dj-shadow/dj-shadow-endtroducing-deluxe-edition/ |title=DJ Shadow – Endtroducing Deluxe Edition |magazine=Paste |location=Decatur |date=August 1, 2005 |access-date=March 24, 2013 |last=Richardson |first=Mark |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017200140/http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2005/08/dj-shadow-endtroducing-deluxe-edition.html |archive-date=October 17, 2012 |url-status=live}} Track six is an untitled interlude featuring a man reciting a monologue about a woman and her sisters over a funk backing.{{sfn|Christgau|1998|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=EdN8VLiEZtcC&pg=PA428 428]}}

The two-part "Stem/Long Stem" begins the second half of Endtroducing. John Bush of AllMusic called the track a "suite of often melancholy music, a piece that consistently refuses to be pigeonholed into any musical style."{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/stem-long-stem-transmission-2-mt0027018022 |title=Stem/Long Stem/Transmission 2 – DJ Shadow |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=March 25, 2013 |last=Bush |first=John |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150228130249/http://www.allmusic.com/song/stem-long-stem-transmission-2-mt0027018022 |archive-date=February 28, 2015 |url-status=live}} The first half, "Stem", sets strings against a recurring sequence of erratic drum beats, before giving way to the more ethereal "Long Stem", followed by "Transmission 2". "Mutual Slump" features "dreamy" female spoken vocals and prominent samples of Björk's "Possibly Maybe".{{cite web |url=https://www.stereogum.com/1915225/hear-dj-shadow-break-down-mutual-slump-on-song-exploder/music/ |title=Hear DJ Shadow Break Down 'Mutual Slump' On Song Exploder |website=Stereogum |date=December 8, 2016 |access-date=May 30, 2021 |last=Breihan |first=Tom}} The sparse "Organ Donor" juxtaposes an organ solo and a drum break. "Why Hip Hop Sucks in '96" is a brief interlude featuring a repeating G-funk-esque beat, over which a voice shouts "It's the money".{{cite magazine |title=Instrumental Growth |magazine=Urb |location=West Hollywood |issue=138 |date=July–August 2006 |last=Vaziri |first=Aidin |page=99}} DJ Shadow composed the track to express his dissatisfaction with the state of commercial hip hop music in the mid-1990s.

"Midnight in a Perfect World" mixes a soulful vocal line with a slow drum beat.{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/7853-the-top-200-tracks-of-the-1990s-20-01/ |title=The Top 200 Tracks of the 1990s: 20–01 |website=Pitchfork |date=September 3, 2010 |access-date=February 22, 2013 |page=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424110325/http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7853-the-top-200-tracks-of-the-1990s-20-01/ |archive-date=April 24, 2013 |url-status=live}} It samples the bassline from Pekka Pohjola's "The Madness Subsides",{{cite web |url=https://www.allaboutjazz.com/remembering-pekka-pohjola-pekka-pohjola-by-anthony-shaw.php |title=Remembering Pekka Pohjola |website=All About Jazz |date=February 1, 2009 |access-date=May 29, 2021 |last=Shaw |first=Anthony}} as well as elements of David Axelrod's piano composition "The Human Abstract".{{cite news |url=https://www.seattleweekly.com/music/dungen-2/ |title=David Axelrod: The Edge: David Axelrod at Capitol Records 1966–1970 (Capitol Jazz) |newspaper=Seattle Weekly |date=October 9, 2006 |access-date=May 1, 2013 |last=Patrin |first=Nate |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202230645/http://www.seattleweekly.com/2005-09-28/music/dungen/ |archive-date=December 2, 2013 |url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=https://www.treblezine.com/30913-10-essential-plunderphonics-tracks/ |title=10 Essential Plunderphonics Tracks |website=Treble |date=July 21, 2016 |access-date=July 24, 2024 |last1=Terich |first1=Jeff |last2=Blyweiss |first2=Adam |last3=Braunstein |first3=Ben}} "Napalm Brain/Scatter Brain" progresses slowly, starting with a bassline and a drum loop, then gradually increasing in tempo as additional instrumentation enters the mix. The track eventually reaches its climax and deconstructs itself, leaving a single string sample playing by its conclusion. Endtroducing ends "on an up note" with "What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 1 – Blue Sky Revisit)", which is anchored by warm saxophone and keyboard hooks. A third and final "transmission" closes the album with the spoken words "It is happening again", sampled from the David Lynch television series Twin Peaks.{{cite web |url=https://www.popmatters.com/djshadow-private2-2495888099.html |title=DJ Shadow: The Private Press |website=PopMatters |date=August 8, 2002 |access-date=March 25, 2013 |last=Thill |first=Scott |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121110181759/http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/djshadow-private2/ |archive-date=November 10, 2012 |url-status=live}}

Release

Endtroducing was released by Mo' Wax on September 16, 1996, in the United Kingdom.{{cite AV media notes |title=Endtroducing..... |others=DJ Shadow |publisher=UMC |edition=20th anniversary Endtrospective |year=2016 |id=00602547957207 |type=liner notes}}{{cite web |url=http://www.popmatters.com/post/161204-dj-shadow/ |title=Counterbalance No. 91: DJ Shadow's 'Endtroducing...' |website=PopMatters |date=July 27, 2012 |access-date=September 16, 2016 |last1=Mendelsohn |first1=Jason |last2=Klinger |first2=Eric |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160920044217/http://www.popmatters.com/post/161204-dj-shadow/ |archive-date=September 20, 2016 |url-status=dead}} In the United States, it was issued by Mo' Wax and FFRR Records on November 19, 1996. DJ Shadow promoted the album through various interviews and press appearances.{{sfn|Wilder|2005|p=96}} The record spent three weeks on the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number 17,{{cite web |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/31363/dj-shadow/ |title=DJ Shadow |publisher=Official Charts Company |access-date=October 8, 2020}} and was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry in 1998. It also charted at number 75 in the Netherlands. "Midnight in a Perfect World" was previously issued as the album's first single on September 2, 1996,{{cite magazine |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-08-31.pdf |title=New Releases: Singles |magazine=Music Week |location=London |date=August 31, 1996 |access-date=May 29, 2021 |page=31}} and it was later released to American college and modern rock radio stations in January 1997.{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ugkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA21 |title=Out of the Shadows |magazine=Billboard |location=New York |volume=108 |issue=47 |date=November 23, 1996 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |page=21}} It peaked at number 54 on the UK Singles Chart, while its music video, directed by B Plus, received much airplay on MTV's electronic music program Amp. "Stem" was released as the album's second single on October 28, 1996,{{cite magazine |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-10-26.pdf |title=New Releases: Singles |magazine=Music Week |location=London |date=October 26, 1996 |access-date=May 29, 2021 |page=29}} reaching number 74 in the UK and number 14 in Ireland.{{cite web |url=http://irishcharts.ie/search/placement?page=1&search_type=title&placement=Stem |title=The Irish Charts – Search Results – Stem |publisher=Irish Singles Chart |access-date=May 29, 2021}} "What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 1)" followed on January 12, 1998,{{cite web |url=http://www.juno.co.uk/all12-1-98.htm |title=New Releases 12 January 1998 – 18 January 1998: All |publisher=Juno Records |access-date=June 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040927023123/http://www.juno.co.uk/all12-1-98.htm |archive-date=September 27, 2004 |url-status=dead}} charting at number 54 in the UK. A fourth and final single – a double A-side release featuring producer Cut Chemist's remix of "The Number Song" and DJ Shadow's remix of the synth-pop band Depeche Mode's "Painkiller" – was issued on February 23, 1998.{{cite web |url=http://www.juno.co.uk/all23-2-98.htm |title=New Releases 23 February 1998 – 1 March 1998: All |publisher=Juno Records |access-date=June 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040927023524/http://www.juno.co.uk/all23-2-98.htm |archive-date=September 27, 2004 |url-status=dead}}

Describing the time spent promoting Endtroducing as "some weird rollercoaster ride", DJ Shadow was dismayed by the lack of reaction upon returning to his hometown of Davis, compared to the attention he had received within the British music scene.{{sfn|Wilder|2005|p=96}} He felt he had been manipulated by the press and his record label and "went from being angry to being depressed" over the perceived lack of control he had over his life.{{sfn|Wilder|2005|p=96}} DJ Shadow found himself compelled to produce new tracks such as "High Noon" as outlets for expressing his turbulent feelings at the time.{{cite web |url=https://thequietus.com/articles/10446-dj-shadow-reconstructed-best-of-interview |title=DJ Shadow's Reconstructed: An Oral History |website=The Quietus |date=October 23, 2012 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |last=Tuffrey |first=Laurie |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630102609/http://thequietus.com/articles/10446-dj-shadow-reconstructed-best-of-interview |archive-date=June 30, 2013 |url-status=live}} Following this period, interest in his work grew in the US; newspapers ran stories on Endtroducing and DJ Shadow received several phone calls a day, enough to convince him to hire a manager.{{sfn|Wilder|2005|p=96}} Endtroducing eventually entered the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart and peaked at number 37 on the listing in April 1997.

Critical reception

{{Music ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/endtroducing-mw0000082992 |title=Endtroducing..... – DJ Shadow |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=March 17, 2013 |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130428020241/http://www.allmusic.com/album/endtroducing-mw0000082992 |archive-date=April 28, 2013 |url-status=live}}

| rev2 = Alternative Press

| rev2score = 5/5{{cite magazine |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing..... |magazine=Alternative Press |location=Cleveland |issue=105 |date=April 1997 |page=70}}

| rev3 = Christgau's Consumer Guide

| rev3score = A+{{sfn|Christgau|2000|p=[https://archive.org/details/christgausconsum00chri_0/page/83 83]}}

| rev4 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev4score = A−{{cite magazine |url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,295206,00.html |title=Music Review: 'Endtroducing ... ' |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |location=New York |issue=355 |date=November 29, 1996 |access-date=March 20, 2013 |last=Wiederhorn |first=Jon |page=92 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018041530/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,295206,00.html |archive-date=October 18, 2012 |url-status=dead}}

| rev5 = The Guardian

| rev5score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite news |url=http://www.djshadow.com/sites/default/files/djs_news_images/3_guardianendtro_enlarge.jpg |title=The hippest hop ever |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=September 13, 1996 |access-date=March 26, 2013 |last=Bennun |first=David |author-link=David Bennun |at="Friday Review" section, p. 18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111222220607/http://www.djshadow.com/sites/default/files/djs_news_images/3_guardianendtro_enlarge.jpg |archive-date=December 22, 2011 |url-status=dead}}

| rev6 = NME

| rev6score = 8/10{{cite magazine |url=http://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews/19980101000116reviews.html |title=Gloaming Instinct |magazine=NME |location=London |date=September 14, 1996 |access-date=January 27, 2016 |last=Williams |first=Simon |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000817212832/http://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews/19980101000116reviews.html |archive-date=August 17, 2000 |url-status=dead}}

| rev7 = Pitchfork

| rev7score = 10/10{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/2377-endtroducing-deluxe-edition/ |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing... [Deluxe Edition] |website=Pitchfork |date=June 9, 2005 |access-date=January 17, 2017 |last=Dahlen |first=Chris |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501061831/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/2377-endtroducing-deluxe-edition/ |archive-date=May 1, 2013 |url-status=live}}

| rev8 = Rolling Stone

| rev8score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite magazine |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/djshadow/albums/album/234499/review/5946435/endtroducing |title=Ghosts in the machine |magazine=Rolling Stone |location=New York |issue=752 |date=January 23, 1997 |access-date=August 21, 2015 |last=Fine |first=Jason |pages=62–63 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100118000605/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/djshadow/albums/album/234499/review/5946435/endtroducing |archive-date=January 18, 2010 |url-status=dead}}

| rev9 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide

| rev9score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{sfn|Sheffield|2004|pp=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/247 247–248]}}

| rev10 = Spin

| rev10score = 9/10{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xGB0iIRXtJEC&pg=PA81 |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing.... |magazine=Spin |location=New York |volume=12 |issue=10 |date=January 1997 |access-date=March 22, 2013 |last=Michel |first=Sia |author-link=Sia Michel |page=81}}

}}

Endtroducing received critical acclaim. Alternative Press praised the album as "an undeniable hip-hop masterpiece" showing "DJ Shadow remembers that sampling is an art form", while Q reviewer Martin Aston described it as "a cinematically broad spectrum so deftly layered that the sampling-is-stealing argument falls flat".{{cite magazine |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing..... |magazine=Q |location=London |issue=122 |date=November 1996 |last=Aston |first=Martin |page=120}} David Bennun from The Guardian said the record was "not only one of the most daring and original albums of recent times, but also one of the loveliest", and in Melody Maker, he wrote: "I am, I confess, totally confounded by it. I hear a lot of good records, but very few impossible ones... You need this record. You are incomplete without it."{{cite magazine |title=Tricks of the Shade |magazine=Melody Maker |location=London |date=September 14, 1996 |last=Bennun |first=David |page=49}} Robert Christgau commented in Playboy that Endtroducing consists of "not so much songs as compositions",{{cite magazine |title=Techno |magazine=Playboy |location=Chicago |volume=44 |issue=2 |date=February 1997 |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau |page=16}} and also claimed that while listeners unfamiliar with the album's style of music would not find its tracks as powerful, "they are so rich and eclectic, and spun out with such a sense of flow, that this album establishes the kind of convincing aural reality other British techno experimenters only fantasize about."{{cite web |url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/play/1996-10.php |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing . . . DJ Shadow / Tricky: Pre-Millennium Tension |publisher=robertchristgau.com |access-date=August 29, 2015 |last=Christgau |first=Robert}} Author and rock critic Greil Marcus penned a glowing review of the album in Artforum, where he called it "absolutely modern – which is to say ambient-dreamy and techno-abstract" and "quite brilliant throughout".{{cite magazine |url=https://www.artforum.com/print/199702/greil-marcus-32885 |title=Real Life Rock: Greil Marcus' Top Ten |magazine=Artforum |location=New York |volume=35 |issue=6 |date=February 1997 |access-date=May 29, 2021 |last=Marcus |first=Greil |author-link=Greil Marcus |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130308051515/http://www.djshadow.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/news_main/djs_news_images/6_toptenrock_enlarge_0.jpg |archive-date=March 8, 2013 |url-status=live}}

Entertainment Weekly critic Jon Wiederhorn likened Endtroducing to "a surreal film soundtrack on which jazz, classical, and jungle fragments are artfully blended with turntable tricks and dialogue snippets" and said that it "takes hip-hop into the next dimension." Tony Green of JazzTimes commended DJ Shadow's "unerring ear for motif and texture",{{cite magazine |url=http://jazztimes.com/articles/9264-endtroducing-dj-shadow |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing |magazine=JazzTimes |location=Quincy |volume=27 |issue=3 |date=April 1997 |access-date=April 22, 2013 |last=Green |first=Tony |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413224253/http://jazztimes.com/articles/9264-endtroducing-dj-shadow |archive-date=April 13, 2014 |url-status=dead}} and Simon Williams of NME called him "both slyly knowing and brilliantly naive, fusing the dramatic and the deranged to his own sweet end." Spin{{'}}s Sia Michel said that the album "practically folds you into its symphonic fantasia, the coming-of-age story of a 24-year-old bunk-bed dreamer." Rolling Stone journalist Jason Fine found that while Endtroducing occasionally lapses into less interesting "moody atmospherics", "even in the record's mellowest moments, Shadow's allegiance to the hard beats of hip-hop saves him".

Endtroducing appeared in numerous publications' lists of the best albums of 1996. The album topped year-end lists by Muzik and OOR,{{cite magazine |title=Albums of the Year |magazine=Muzik |location=London |issue=20 |date=January 1997 |pages=64–65}}{{cite magazine |title=Jaarlijst OOR 1996 |magazine=OOR |location=Amsterdam |date=December 14, 1996 |language=nl}} and placed second in Melody Maker{{'}}s.{{cite magazine |title=Albums of the Year |magazine=Melody Maker |location=London |date=December 21–28, 1996 |pages=66–67}} It was voted fourth place in The Village Voice{{'}}s Pazz & Jop critics' poll for 1996.{{cite news |url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres96.php |title=The 1996 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll |newspaper=The Village Voice |location=New York |date=February 25, 1997 |access-date=March 27, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130815213350/https://robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres96.php |archive-date=August 15, 2013 |url-status=live}} Robert Christgau, the poll's creator, named Endtroducing the best album of the year.{{cite news |url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/deans96.php |title=Pazz & Jop 1996: Dean's List |newspaper=The Village Voice |location=New York |date=February 25, 1997 |access-date=March 27, 2012 |last=Christgau |first=Robert |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130815234450/https://robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/deans96.php |archive-date=August 15, 2013 |url-status=live}} The album also ranked in the top ten of year-end lists by The Face,{{cite magazine |title=Review of the Year |magazine=The Face |location=London |volume=2 |issue=100 |date=January 1997 |pages=158–178}} the Los Angeles Times,{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-12-29-ca-13384-story.html |title=The Future Beckons |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=December 29, 1996 |access-date=April 22, 2013 |last=Hilburn |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Hilburn |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140414003147/http://articles.latimes.com/1996-12-29/entertainment/ca-13384_1_future-beckons |archive-date=April 14, 2014 |url-status=live}} Mojo,{{cite magazine |title=Albums of the Year 1996 |magazine=Mojo |location=London |issue=38 |date=January 1997}} NME,{{cite magazine |url=https://www.nme.com/features/1996-2-1045366 |title=Hail Merry! NME Writers' Top 50 LPs |magazine=NME |location=London |date=December 21–28, 1996 |access-date=March 28, 2013 |pages=66–67 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509045451/http://www.nme.com/bestalbumsandtracksoftheyear/1996 |archive-date=May 9, 2013 |url-status=live}} and Vox.{{cite magazine |title=The Fifty Best Albums of 1996 – DJ Shadow: Endtroducing..... |magazine=Vox |location=London |issue=75 |date=January 1997 |last=Willmott |first=Ben |page=95}}

Legacy

Endtroducing has appeared in critics' lists of the greatest albums. Publications such as Pitchfork,{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s/?page=10 |title=Top 100 Albums of the 1990s |website=Pitchfork |date=November 17, 2003 |access-date=March 19, 2013 |page=10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090622023306/http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s/10/ |archive-date=June 22, 2009 |url-status=live}} Q,{{cite magazine |title=90 Best Albums of the 1990s – DJ Shadow: Endtroducing..... |magazine=Q |location=London |issue=159 |date=December 1999 |page=90}} Rolling Stone,{{sfn|"100 Best Albums of the '90s"|2010|pp=282–297}} Slant Magazine,{{cite web |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/best-albums-of-the-1990s/ |title=The 100 Best Albums of the 1990s |website=Slant Magazine |date=February 14, 2011 |access-date=March 20, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220427102557/https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/best-albums-of-the-1990s/ |archive-date=April 27, 2022 |url-status=live}} and Spin{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bGjsvmNt8UgC&pg=PA126 |title=The 90 Greatest Albums of the '90s – DJ Shadow: Endtroducing... |magazine=Spin |location=New York |volume=15 |issue=9 |date=September 1999 |access-date=October 19, 2020 |last=Dolan |first=Jon |page=126}} have placed it on their lists of best albums of the 1990s. Robert Christgau named it among his 10 favorite albums from the decade.{{cite web |url=https://robertchristgau.substack.com/p/xgau-sez-may-2021 |title=Xgau Sez: May, 2021 |website=And It Don't Stop |publisher=Substack |date=May 19, 2021 |access-date=May 23, 2021 |last=Christgau |first=Robert}} NPR listed Endtroducing as one of the 300 most important American records of the 20th century,{{cite web |url=https://legacy.npr.org/programs/specials/vote/300.html |title=The NPR 300 |publisher=NPR |access-date=May 29, 2021}} and Time selected the record as one of the "All-Time 100 Albums" in 2006.{{cite magazine |url=https://entertainment.time.com/2006/11/02/the-all-time-100-albums/slide/endtroducing/ |title=Endtroducing… |magazine=Time |location=New York |date=November 2, 2006 |access-date=March 19, 2013 |last=Tyrangiel |first=Josh |author-link=Josh Tyrangiel |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130415082516/http://entertainment.time.com/2006/11/02/the-all-time-100-albums/slide/endtroducing/ |archive-date=April 15, 2013 |url-status=live}} It was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.{{sfn|Reece|2006|p=779}} In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked Endtroducing number 329 on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/dj-shadow-entroducing-1062904/ |title=The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time |magazine=Rolling Stone |location=New York |date=September 22, 2020 |access-date=October 7, 2020}}

Guinness World Records cited Endtroducing as the first album created entirely from samples.{{cite web |url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/first-album-made-completely-from-samples/ |title=First album made completely from samples |website=Guinness World Records |access-date=March 20, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130807084205/http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/records-1000/first-album-made-completely-from-samples/ |archive-date=August 7, 2013 |url-status=live}} AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine called it "not only a major breakthrough for hip-hop and electronica, but for pop music." It was a driving force in the development of instrumental hip hop music, inspiring numerous DJs and producers to create sample-based works.{{cite news |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/2012/03/29/shadow-influence-looms-large/Ip8K0R8rlE33LZMVIijKzH/story.html |title=DJ Shadow's influence looms large |newspaper=The Boston Globe |date=March 30, 2012 |access-date=March 23, 2013 |last=Sullivan |first=James |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202221415/http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/2012/03/29/shadow-influence-looms-large/Ip8K0R8rlE33LZMVIijKzH/story.html |archive-date=December 2, 2013 |url-status=live}} Tim Stelloh of PopMatters cited it as the "benchmark" for the genre.{{cite web |url=https://www.popmatters.com/040709-mclesshiphop-2496102768.html |title=Instrumental What!?? MC-Less Hip-Hop and the Square One Dilemma |website=PopMatters |date=July 9, 2004 |access-date=April 27, 2013 |last=Stelloh |first=Tim |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160920052620/http://www.popmatters.com/feature/040709-mclesshiphop/ |archive-date=September 20, 2016 |url-status=live}} Will Hermes called Endtroducing "trip-hop's crowning achievement" in Spin,{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1vIfI5iSyMEC&pg=PA118 |title=Ixnay on the Iptray-Ophay |magazine=Spin |location=New York |volume=19 |issue=3 |date=March 2003 |access-date=April 27, 2013 |last=Hermes |first=Will |author-link=Will Hermes |page=118}} and Jeff Weiss of the Los Angeles Times wrote that it defined American trip hop.{{cite news |url=https://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/09/dj-shadow-debuts-two-new-tracks.html |title=DJ Shadow debuts two new tracks |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=September 13, 2010 |access-date=March 19, 2013 |last=Weiss |first=Jeff |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120420154424/http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/09/dj-shadow-debuts-two-new-tracks.html |archive-date=April 20, 2012 |url-status=live}} Music journalist Trey Zenker described it as a "plunderphonics masterpiece" in an essay for Tidal,{{cite web |url=https://tidal.com/magazine/article/rewind-since-i-left-you-by-the-avalanches-us/1-27148 |title=Rewind: Since I Left You By The Avalanches |publisher=Tidal |date=June 2, 2016 |access-date=August 7, 2021 |last=Zenker |first=Trey}} while Turk Dietrich of the American experimental music duo Belong said that it was a nearly unrivaled masterwork of sampledelia.{{cite web |url=https://www.self-titledmag.com/primer-belong-on-essential-electronic-records-from-the-90s-that-werent-released-on-warp/ |title=Primer: Belong On … Essential Electronic Records From the '90s (That Weren't Released On Warp) |website=Self-Titled |date=March 25, 2011 |access-date=June 16, 2018 |last=Dietrich |first=Turk |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190604210857/https://www.self-titledmag.com/2011/03/25/primer-belong-on-essential-electronic-records-from-the-90s-that-werent-released-on-warp/ |archive-date=June 4, 2019 |url-status=live}} Endtroducing inspired the British rock band Radiohead to edit and loop drums on their 1997 album OK Computer.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.guitarworld.com/radiohead_the_golden_age_of_radiohead?page=0,3 |title=The Golden Age of Radiohead |magazine=Guitar World |location=New York |volume=18 |issue=4 |date=April 1998 |access-date=October 19, 2020 |last=Randall |first=Mac |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003065151/http://www.guitarworld.com/radiohead_the_golden_age_of_radiohead?page=0,3 |archive-date=October 3, 2012 |url-status=dead}} Several artists sampled on Endtroducing, including David Axelrod and British rock band Nirvana, praised the album.{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BHViszhzqIgC&pg=PA98 |title=The Shadow Knows |magazine=Spin |location=New York |volume=18 |issue=7 |date=July 2002 |access-date=March 31, 2013 |last=Hermes |first=Will |page=98}}{{cite web |url=http://www.djhistory.com/interviews/dj-shadow |title=Interviews: DJ Shadow |publisher=DJhistory.com |date=July 7, 2005 |access-date=March 31, 2013 |last=Brewster |first=Bill |author-link=Bill Brewster (DJ) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130627072455/http://www.djhistory.com/interviews/dj-shadow |archive-date=June 27, 2013 |url-status=dead}} DJ Shadow expressed surprise at the album's stature: "After the record, I'd always bump into these world-class producers who'd say, 'Yeah, Endtroducing – what a great piece of production.' I just did it on one sampler in a tiny little studio."

Andy Battaglia of The A.V. Club suggested that the influence of Endtroducing may have had a negative effect on the album itself, saying that it "has been partially diluted by the symphonic beat-collage culture it helped spawn."{{cite web |url=https://www.avclub.com/dj-shadow-the-private-press-1798197603 |title=DJ Shadow: The Private Press |website=The A.V. Club |date=June 11, 2002 |access-date=March 23, 2013 |last=Battaglia |first=Andy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111111140138/http://www.avclub.com/articles/dj-shadow-the-private-press,17323/ |archive-date=November 11, 2011 |url-status=live}} The acclaim set high expectations for future releases by DJ Shadow,{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_mqDCcg7jpwC&pg=PA10 |title=Beat Master |magazine=CMJ New Music Report |location=New York |volume=71 |issue=10 |date=June 3, 2002 |access-date=March 23, 2013 |last=Levy |first=Doug |pages=10–11}} and he expressed his dissatisfaction with being expected to "repeat Endtroducing over and over again".{{cite web |url=http://www.okayplayer.com/interviews/re-endtroducing-exclusive-dj-shadow-interview.html |title=Re-Endtroducing: Exclusive DJ Shadow Interview |publisher=Okayplayer |date=November 17, 2011 |access-date=March 23, 2013 |last=Lanier |first=April |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019151506/http://www.okayplayer.com/interviews/re-endtroducing-exclusive-dj-shadow-interview.html |archive-date=October 19, 2012 |url-status=dead}} Nonetheless, DJ Shadow clarified that he views the album in a positive light: "People always seem to suggest that there's this pressure, and that Endtroducing is some kind of albatross, and I've just honestly never felt that way. I think that I have a healthy enough respect for the lineage of the music and how rare it is that you can connect with an audience. If that will always be 'the record' then so be it, that's cool."{{cite web |url=https://www.gigwise.com/features/64894/DJ-Shadow-Interview |title=DJ Shadow: Interview |website=Gigwise |date=July 12, 2011 |access-date=March 23, 2013 |last=Steele |first=Heather |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413155552/http://www.gigwise.com/features/64894/DJ-Shadow-Interview |archive-date=April 13, 2014 |url-status=live}} By April 26, 2005, Endtroducing had sold more than 290,000 copies in the US alone.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/63135/dj-shadow-expands-endtroducing |title=DJ Shadow Expands 'Endtroducing' |magazine=Billboard |location=New York |date=April 26, 2005 |access-date=March 10, 2013}}

=Reissues=

A deluxe edition of Endtroducing was released on June 6, 2005. It includes a second disc, Excessive Ephemera, comprising alternate takes, demos, B-sides, remixes, and a live track, as well as new sleeve photographs and notes about the making of the album.{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/release/endtroducing-deluxe-edition-mr0001255458 |title=Endtroducing..... [Deluxe Edition] – DJ Shadow |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=May 30, 2021 |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas}}{{cite magazine |url=https://xlr8r.com/reviews/endtroducing-deluxe-edition/ |title=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing – Deluxe Edition |magazine=XLR8R |location=San Francisco |date=July 17, 2005 |access-date=May 30, 2021 |last=Macdonald |first=Cameron}} A second deluxe edition commemorating the album's 20th anniversary, the Endtrospective edition, was released on October 28, 2016, featuring Excessive Ephemera, the remix album Endtroducing... Re-Emagined, and additional sleeve photographs and notes.{{cite press release |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dj-shadow-announces-endtroducing-20th-anniversary-endtrospective-edition-300329312.html |title=DJ Shadow Announces Endtroducing 20th Anniversary Endtrospective Edition |publisher=PR Newswire |date=September 16, 2016 |access-date=May 30, 2021}}{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/68259-dj-shadow-announces-20th-anniversary-endtroducing-reissue-shares-clams-casino-remix-of-stem-long-stem-listen/ |title=DJ Shadow Announces 20th Anniversary Endtroducing... Reissue, Shares Clams Casino Remix of 'Stem / Long Stem': Listen |website=Pitchfork |date=September 16, 2016 |access-date=October 16, 2016 |last=Pearce |first=Sheldon}} A 25th-anniversary reissue was released on September 24, 2021. The reissue was remastered at half speed at Abbey Road Studios from DJ Shadow's original DAT recording.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/dj-shadow-announces-25th-anniversary-reissue-of-endtroducing-3037146 |title=DJ Shadow announces 25th anniversary reissue of 'Endtroducing' |magazine=NME |location=London |date=September 4, 2021 |access-date=October 5, 2021 |last=Lavin |first=Will}}

Track listing

{{Track listing

| headline = Endtroducing..... track listing

| title1 = Best Foot Forward

| writer1 = Josh Davis

| length1 = 0:49

| title2 = Building Steam with a Grain of Salt

| writer2 = {{hlist|Davis|Jeremy Storch}}

| length2 = 6:40

| title3 = The Number Song

| writer3 = Davis

| length3 = 4:40

| title4 = Changeling" / "Transmission 1

| writer4 = {{hlist|Davis|Peter Baumann|Christopher Franke|Edgar Froese}}

| length4 = 7:51

| title5 = What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 4)

| writer5 = {{hlist|Davis|Ray Smith}}

| length5 = 5:08

| title6 =

| writer6 = Davis

| length6 = 0:24

| title7 = Stem/Long Stem" / "Transmission 2

| writer7 = {{hlist|Davis|Patrick Campbell-Lyons|Alex Spyropoulos}}

| length7 = 9:21

| title8 = Mutual Slump

| writer8 = {{hlist|Davis|Björk Guðmundsdóttir|Marius de Vries|Paul Hooper}}

| length8 = 4:02

| title9 = Organ Donor

| writer9 = Davis

| length9 = 1:57

| title10 = Why Hip Hop Sucks in '96

| writer10 = Davis

| length10 = 0:43

| title11 = Midnight in a Perfect World

| writer11 = {{hlist|Davis|Baraka|Pekka Pohjola}}

| length11 = 4:57

| title12 = Napalm Brain/Scatter Brain

| writer12 = Davis

| length12 = 9:23

| title13 = What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 1 – Blue Sky Revisit)" / "Transmission 3

| writer13 = {{hlist|Davis|Jimmy Heath|Shawn Phillips}}

| length13 = 7:28

| total_length = 63:23

}}

Samples credited in liner notes

"Building Steam with a Grain of Salt" contains samples of "I Feel a New Shadow", written and performed by Jeremy Storch.
"The Number Song" contains samples of "Orion", performed by Metallica.
"Changeling" / "Transmission 1" contains samples of "Invisible Limits", written by Peter Baumann, Christopher Franke, and Edgar Froese and performed by Tangerine Dream.
"What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 4)" contains samples of "The Vision", written by Ray Smith and performed by Flying Island.
"Stem/Long Stem" / "Transmission 2" contains samples of "Love Suite", written by Patrick Campbell-Lyons and Alex Spyropoulos and performed by Nirvana.
"Mutual Slump" contains samples of "Possibly Maybe", written by Björk Guðmundsdóttir, Marius de Vries, and Paul Hooper and performed by Björk.
"Midnight in a Perfect World" contains samples of "Sower of Seeds", written and performed by Baraka; and "The Madness Subsides", written and performed by Pekka Pohjola.
"What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 1 – Blue Sky Revisit)" / "Transmission 3" contains samples of "The Voice of the Saxophone", written by Jimmy Heath and performed by the Heath Brothers; and "All Our Love", written and performed by Shawn Phillips.

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.{{cite AV media notes |title=Endtroducing..... |others=DJ Shadow |publisher=Mo' Wax |year=1996 |id=MW059CD |type=liner notes}}

Production

DJ Shadow – production, engineering, mixing
Dan the Automator – engineering (assistant)

Design

B Plus – photography
Barney Bankhead – photography
Will Bankhead – photography, sleeve design
Ben Drury – sleeve design

Charts

scope="row"\| Belgian Mid Price Albums (Ultratop Flanders){{cite web \|url=https://www.ultratop.be/nl/mid-price/2016/20160910 \|title=Mid Price \|publisher=Hung Medien \|date=September 10, 2016 \|access-date=July 18, 2021 \|language=nl}} \| 29
class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" \|+Weekly chart performance for Endtroducing..... !scope="col"\| Chart (1996–2019) !scope="col"\| Peak position
{{Album chart\|Netherlands\|75\|artist=DJ Shadow\|album=Endtroducing\|access-date=March 17, 2013\|rowheader=true\|refname="NLD"}}
scope="row"\| European Top 100 Albums (Music & Media){{cite magazine \|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1996/MM-1996-10-05.pdf \|title=European Top 100 Albums \|magazine=Music & Media \|location=London \|volume=13 \|issue=40 \|date=October 5, 1996 \|access-date=May 30, 2021 \|page=17}} \| 54
{{Album chart\|Scotland\|27\|date=19960922\|access-date=May 30, 2021\|rowheader=true}}
{{Album chart\|UK2\|17\|date=19960922\|access-date=April 20, 2018\|rowheader=true\|refname="UK"}}
scope="row"\| UK Dance Albums (OCC){{cite magazine \|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-09-28.pdf \|title=Dance Albums \|magazine=Music Week \|location=London \|date=September 28, 1996 \|access-date=May 29, 2021 \|page=33}} \| 1
scope="row"\| UK Independent Albums (OCC){{cite magazine \|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-10-05.pdf \|title=Independent Albums \|magazine=Music Week \|location=London \|date=October 5, 1996 \|access-date=May 29, 2021 \|page=24}} \| 3
{{Album chart\|UKR&B\|6\|date=20190621\|access-date=June 2, 2021\|rowheader=true}}
{{Album chart\|BillboardHeatseekers\|37\|artist=DJ Shadow\|access-date=April 20, 2018\|rowheader=true\|refname="Heatseekers"}}

Certifications

{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for Endtroducing.....}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|award=Gold|type=album|certyear=2010|relyear=1996|artist=DJ Shadow|title=Endtroducing|access-date=March 27, 2013}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|award=Platinum|type=album|relyear=1996|certyear=2024|id=2067-1081-2|artist=DJ Shadow|title=Endtroducing|access-date=April 12, 2024|refname="BPI"}}

References

Bibliography

{{cite book |chapter=100 Best Albums of the '90s |chapter-url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/100-best-albums-of-the-90s-152425/dj-shadow-endtroducing-3-152892/ |access-date=March 20, 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630061750/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/100-best-albums-of-the-nineties-20110427/dj-shadow-endtroducing-20110516 |archive-date=June 30, 2013 |url-status=live |title=The '90s: The Inside Stories from the Decade That Rocked |publisher=Harper Design |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-06-177920-6 |ref={{harvid|"100 Best Albums of the '90s"|2010}}}}
{{cite book |chapter=Art-Rock You Can Dance To: DJ Shadow |title=Grown Up All Wrong: 75 Great Rock and Pop Artists from Vaudeville to Techno |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau |publisher=Harvard University Press |year=1998 |isbn=0-674-44318-7}}
{{cite book |chapter=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing... DJ Shadow |title=Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s |title-link=Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s |last=Christgau |first=Robert |publisher=St. Martin's Griffin |year=2000 |isbn=0-312-24560-2}}
{{cite book |title=Groove Music: The Art and Culture of the Hip-Hop DJ |last=Katz |first=Mark |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-19-533111-0}}
{{cite book |chapter=DJ Shadow: Endtroducing... |last=Reece |first=Craig |title=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die |title-link=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die |editor-last=Dimery |editor-first=Robert |publisher=Universe Publishing |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-7893-1371-3}}
{{cite book |chapter=DJ Shadow |last=Sheffield |first=Rob |author-link=Rob Sheffield |title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide |title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide |editor1-last=Brackett |editor1-first=Nathan |editor1-link=Nathan Brackett |editor2-last=Hoard |editor2-first=Christian |editor2-link=Christian Hoard |publisher=Simon & Schuster |edition=4th |year=2004 |isbn=0-7432-0169-8}}
{{cite book |chapter=DJ Shadow |title=The A to X of Alternative Music |last=Taylor |first=Steve |publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group |year=2004 |isbn=0-8264-7396-2}}
{{cite book |title=Endtroducing... |last=Wilder |first=Eliot |series=33⅓ |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-8264-1682-7}}