Thievery Corporation

Infobox musical artist
Name = Thievery Corporation


Img_capt =
Img_size =
Landscape =
Background = group_or_band
Alias =
Origin = Washington, D.C., United States
Genre = Lounge, Dub, Trip hop, Downtempo
Years_active = 1995–present
Label = Eighteenth Street Lounge Music
Associated_acts =
URL = [http://www.thieverycorporation.com/ ThieveryCorporation.com]
Current_members = Rob Garza
Eric Hilton
Past_members =

Thievery Corporation is a Washington, D.C.-based recording artist and DJ duo consisting of Rob Garza and Eric Hilton and their supporting artists. Their music style contains elements of dub, acid jazz, Indian classical and Brazilian (such as bossa nova) fused together with a lounge aesthetic. Formed in the summer of 1995 at D.C.’s Eighteenth Street Lounge. Rob Garza and Lounge co-owner Eric Hilton bonded over strong drinks, dub, bossa nova and jazz records, then decided to see what would come of mixing all these in a recording studio. From this, the duo was born and their self started label Eighteenth Street Lounge Music began to emerge on an international level.

The duo caught the ears of underground DJ’s with their first two 12" offerings, "Shaolin Satellite" and "2001: a Spliff Odyssey" and with their 1997 debut LP, "Sounds from the Thievery Hi-Fi", they had already begun to define a new genre of electronic music and connect with an international community of like-minded souls. Though the terminology has varied (downtempo, chill out, left field and a myriad of other permutations), they have been at the top of their game ever since.

In 2002, they released "The Richest Man in Babylon" on their ESL label. This fifteen track album is similar in sound and timbre to their earlier 2000 release, "The Mirror Conspiracy", and features performances by vocalists Emiliana Torrini, Pam Bricker, and Loulou.

In 2005 they released "The Cosmic Game", which has a darker, more psychedelic sound than "The Richest Man in Babylon". The album also featured more high-profile guest singers on it, including Perry Farrell, David Byrne, and Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips.

In 2006, the group released "Versions", a selection of remixes done by Thievery Corporation for other artists and toured the United States, playing at Lollapalooza.

The group released their fifth studio album, Radio Retaliation, on September 23rd 2008.

The language of the group's lyrics are as diverse as English, Spanish, French, Persian, Portuguese, Romanian and Hindi. This reflects the group's global feel and collaborative structure.

Politics

Thievery Corporation's lyrics are highly influenced by current political events. Tracks such as "Amerimacka" and "Revolution Solution" from their album "The Cosmic Game" and "Richest Man in Babylon" from the album of the same title reveal the group's opposition to current political events and most notably initiatives taken by the current Bush administration.

In September 2005, the group participated in the [http://www.opceasefire.org/ Operation Ceasefire] concert, with the objective of ending the war in Iraq.

From their Press Release regarding their upcoming album Radio Retaliation [http://www.thieverycorporation.com/news.htm#08_14_08] Garza is quoted

"Radio Retaliation is definitely a more overt political statement ... There’s no excuse for not speaking out at this point, with the suspension of habeas corpus, outsourced torture, illegal wars of aggression, fuel, food, and economic crises. It’s hard to close your eyes and sleep while the world is burning around you. If you are an artist, this is the most essential time to speak up."

Appearances in Media

* Their song "Indra", the third track from "The Mirror Conspiracy", was featured in the opening shots of "The West Wing" season five episode "Gaza"; in an MTV (India) promo for the programme "Non Stop Hits"; and the "Vanilla Sky" soundtrack.
* Their song "Une Simple Histoire (A Simple Story)" is played during a segment in "Roam", a freeride mountain biking documentary.
* The song "Lebanese Blonde" was used on the soundtrack for Zach Braff's 2004 film "Garden State"; it also featured in "Alias" episode "Mirage", and included in the best of season 4 soundtrack.
* The song "Shaolin Satellite" featured in "The Sopranos" second season episode "D-Girl".
* Their collaboration with Emiliana Torrini "Until The Morning" was used in a 2003 Lexus RX UK television advertisement.
* The song "Vivid" was used in the 2002 Honda UK television advertising campaign "What If?"
* Several tracks from their 1999 "" compilation were used by Dockers as part of their "Nice Pants" TV ad campaign.
* Their song "Coming From The Top" from their "" album was used in the BBC's "Football Focus" in the 2005-2006 season for their "Cult Heroes" segment.
* A few of Thievery Corporation's songs from "Richest Man in Babylon" and "The Cosmic Game" are featured as menu and in-game music on the 2005 EA Sports release "Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06" video game.
* The songs "All That We Perceive" and "From Creation" from "Richest Man in Babylon" is also in 2005 EA Sports release "Cricket 2005"
* The song "All That We Perceive" is featured in the Season 1 Veronica Mars episode, "The Wrath of Con".
*Solange Knowles sampled their track "A Gentle Dissolve" for her album Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams. She used it for "God Given Name"
* The song "Facing East" from "Richest Man in Babylon" is used in the on-phone presentation of the Nokia 6210 Navigator. The full song is also provided/bundeld in the phone's Gallery.(Obsereved on Nokia 6210 Navigator bought in Thailand from an official Nokia Store.)

Discography

Albums

*"Sounds from the Thievery Hi-Fi" (1997)
*"The Mirror Conspiracy" (August 22, 2000)
*"The Richest Man in Babylon" (September 17, 2002)
*"The Outernational Sound" (June 29, 2004)
*"The Cosmic Game" (February 22, 2005)
*"Versions" (2006)
*"Radio Retaliation" (September 23, 2008) [http://www.eslmusic.com/news/radio_retaliation_9_23]

ingles and EPs

*"2001: A Spliff Odyssey" (1996)
*"Dub Plate, Vol. 1" (1996)
*"The Foundation" (1996)
*"Lebanese Blonde" (1998)
*"DC 3000" (1999)
*"It Takes a Thief" (1999)
*"Focus on Sight" (2000)
*"Bossa Per Due" (2001)
*"Revolution Solution"
*"Warning Shots"
*"The Heart's a Lonely Hunter"
*"Sol Tapado"
*"The Richest Man in Babylon"
*"The Lagos Communique"
*"Halfway Around the World"
*"Incident at Gate 7"
*"Encounter in Bahia"
*"ESL Dubplate"
*"Shaolin Satellite"
*"Chaplin Swankster"
*"Originality"
*"Supreme Illusion"

Compilations

*"Dubbed Out in DC" (1997)
*"Abductions and Reconstructions "(1999)
*"" (1999)
*"Departures" (2000)
*"CloudWatch : A Soundtrack to a Freeform Gathering V2"(2000)
*"Sounds from the Verve Hi-Fi" (2001)
*"The Outernational Sound" (2004)
*"Babylon Rewound" (2004)
*Frequent Flyer: Kingston Jamaica (2005)
*"Changed To Lo-Fi" (2006)

Featuring Artists

Thievery Corporation depends on various supporting artists to perform for them. The featuring artists they have invited or remixed include:

* Astrud Gilberto
* Bebel Gilberto
* Damian Draghici
* David Byrne
* Emiliana Torrini
* Femi Kuti
* Gigi Rezende
* Gunjan
* Hooverphonic
* Jim Morrison
* Loulou
* Natalia Clavier
* Notch
* Norah Jones
* Pam Bricker
* Patrick de Santos
* Perry Farrell of Jane's Addiction
* Princess Carina
* Rob Myers
* Rootz
* Seu Jorge
* Sista Pat
* Sleepy Wonder
* Sofa Surfers
* Verny Varela
* Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips
* Zeebo

External links

* [http://www.thieverycorporation.com Official Website]
* [http://www.eslmusic.com Eighteenth Street Lounge Music]
* [http://www.myspace.com/thieverycorporation Thievery Corporation Official Myspace Site]
* [http://thieverycorporation.ning.com Thievery Corporation Fan Site]

*" [http://www.cbcradio3.com/issues/2005_01_28/index.cfm?page=91 Straight Men: The Understated Style of Thievery Corporation] ", story by Sarah Tesla