“Our deepest source of inspiration comes from our record collections,” says Rob Garza; an apt reference to their collective nom de plume. Always great admirers and curators of dusty grooves and all but forgotten music styles, Thievery Corporation borrow from the classically sensual and blunted sounds of their favorite Brazilian bossa nova, Jamaican dub reggae, vintage film soundtracks, and psychedelic rock to forge into new sonic territory.

Recording at the Consulate studios in Washington D.C., Thievery Corporation have managed to blossom in the heart of the empire, a city the duo often refer to as “the real Babylon.” The group is a major presence in a scene legendary for fierce independence, musically and politically from genre-defying pioneers as Chuck Brown and Fugazi to grassroots organizations such as Positive Force and the Future of Music Coalition. Formed in the summer of 1995 at D.C.’s Eighteenth Street Lounge – the now world-renowned venue that is still a creative incubator for DC underground music - 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.

The duo caught the ears of underground DJ’s with their first two 12” offerings, “Shaolin Satellite” and “2001 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, leftfield and a myriad of other permutations), they have been at the top of their game ever since.