Thievery Corporation - Mirror Conspiracy 2LP

Thievery Corporation Mirror Conspiracy on 2LP

When they met in the mid-1990s, Thievery Corporation’s Eric Hilton and Rob Garza instantly bonded over their shared passion for bossa nova. Dedicating their 1996 debut Sounds from the Thievery Hi-Fi to bossa nova pioneer Antonio Carlos Jobim, the Washington, D.C.-based duo have spent nearly two decades creating boundary-warping, complexly crafted electronic music partly inspired by bossa nova’s intricate rhythms and lush textures. 

Thievery Corporation launched itself with the two underground hit vinyl singles, “Shaolin Satellite” and “2001 Spliff Odyssey,” followed by their debut and soon became loosely associated with the “trip-hop” scene that had emerged a few years prior in the U.K. Laid back yet firing, Sounds From The Thievery Hi Fi was a smoky homage to all things out on the dark side, a multi-textured transformation of Rastafarianism, martial arts and fourth world beats. 

Released in August 2000, second album The Mirror Conspiracy found the duo taking a softer approach, inspired by late '60s movie soundtracks and rare library music from Italy and the UK. The result was a record which combined soft expression with powerful emotion. They also introduced live vocalists, including Bebel Gilberto and the late Pam Bricker into the mix here. Bricker sings on Thievery Corporation’s breakthrough hit “Lebanese Blonde,” which was included on the Grammy Award-winning soundtrack to the 2004 film Garden State.

1.  Treasures

2.  Le Monde

3.  Indra

4.  Lebanese Blonde

5.  Focus on Sight

6.  Air Batucada

7.  Só com você

8.  Samba Tranquille

9.  Shadows of Ourselves

10. The Hong Kong Triad

11. Illumination

12. The Mirror Conspiracy

13. Tomorrow

14. Bario Alto

15. Guide for I and