Thievery Corporation began their U.S. tour in Washington, DC, last night with high spirits — and the energy never waned.
The opening song, “Sound the Alarm,” which samples dance beats and reggae and dub grooves, set the tone of the three-hour show with a political theme (“Sound the alarm, order the attack, win Babylon back,” sings the tune’s hook; the band refer to DC as Babylon) and a wall of bass that hit with satisfying force.
The set mainly drew songs off their newest album, Radio Retaliation, but included nods to longtime fans with “.38.45” off their 1997 album Sounds from the Thievery Hi-Fi, and “Illumination” off their 2000 release, The Mirror Conspiracy. “Lebanese Blonde,” a jazzy tune with a sitar riff and electric keyboard that was featured on the Garden State soundtrack in 2004, received screams of delight from fans.
Although headed by producers/DJs Rob Garza and Eric Hilton, Thievery Corporation’s show also featured two amazingly precise drummers, a small horn section, a bass player, a guitar/sitar player, and 10 vocalists from as far away as Tehran and Buenos Aires singing in at least three different languages.
Unfortunately, a third of the show was plagued by ear-piercing feedback. The singers continued undeterred, but winced and shot glares toward the sound booth at each interruption. Feedback aside, the production overall was very well done. Vocals sailed over the persistent, throbbing bass, with highlights like the sitar or drums noticeable but not overpowering.
After an 18-song set that brought the crowd to a spirited dance, the band left the stage. They soon returned for a 10-song encore, which was more like a second performance. Thievery Corporation’s hometown crowd welcomed them to the end of the show. And if they keep up this kind of performance, so will crowds on rest of their tour.
Setlist:
“Sound the Alarm”
“Mandala”
“Lebanese Blonde”
“Shadows”
“Sol Tapado”
“Lib Front”
“Originality”
“Numbers Game”
“38.45”
“Illumination”
“La Femme Parallel”
“33”
“Amerimacka”
“Revolution Solution”
“All that We Perceive”
“Hari Krishna”
“Exilio”
“Vampires”
Encore:
“Heart Is a Lonely Hunter”
“Radio Retaliation”
“Assault”
“Warning Shots”
“Sweet Tides”
“Richest Man”
“Pueblo Unido”
“Until Remix”
“Coming”
“Hate Machines”
Thievery Corperation / Photo by Nestor Diaz
Thievery Corperation / Photo by Nestor Diaz
