The moment the fireworks ended tonight, sirens sounded at the Miller Oasis. It wasn't a sound of caution but rather a rhythmic alert that Thievery Corporation was taking the stage. Although it was hard not to hear, siren or not, it was instantly clear that Thievery Corporation was here to entertain.
Anytime I talk about Thievery Corporation and someone present needs a reference, my descriptions are far from pin-pointed and ultimately imprecise. I usually stumble to say their part dub/reggae, part international lounge and part electronic. But after looks of confusion and misunderstanding, I usually end up telling them just to listen; assuring them they'll love it.
That being said, this was the best show I've seen at Summerfest this year and I'm pretty sure most of the people I was with, whether avid listeners or first time naiveties, would agree.
Employing a horn and drum infused live band, Rob Garza and Eric Hilton successfully expanded and invigorated their recorded sound for this live show setting. Onstage, Garza and Hilton remained ever present as a flow of vocalists, dancers and MCs stood front and center under the spotlight for a screaming crowd tonight.
The show began with familiar hints of Middle Eastern sitar and moved into an anthem of Jamaican dance hall and dub toasting. Several tracks flaunted female Brazilian vocal talent in both English and Spanish as Hilton and Garza mastered the turntables to correspond with the mutating live performance.
Mutually, Garza and Hilton have moved through dozens of styles of music; not disregarding one for the next but finding crucial beats and stimulating lyrics in all. Tonight's vibe was laden with powerfully relevant lyrics and as usual backed by equally committed support. Hilton and Garza allowed guest performers to make politically minded statements under a unifying cultural pretense.
Their most recent album entitled Versions, released nearly 7 years after their first, gives homage to the Jamaican style of "version" productions. Replicating this style of production, several versions of the same song represent the versatile interpretations of Thievery Corporation's collaborating artists.
Using works by a myriad of artists including The Doors, Astrud Gilberto, Nouvelle Vague, Anoushka Shankar and Transglobal Underground, Versions showcases the duo's ability to infiltrate and transform every genre in the book.
And while they easily exposed every angle of their complicated sound tonight, Thievery Corporation referenced new works only as much as they reworked crowd favorites from older albums such as The Richest Man in Babylon and The Mirror Conspiracy.
Admittedly, Thievery Corporation finds inspiration in a shared vinyl record collection; a rarity in an ever increasing digital world where artists tend to favor mass appeal over perspective quality. Their experimental sound leads them to explore the multiplicity of language and gives them a global sound more apt to be found in South American night clubs than American radio charts. Their music really does possess the power to transform; not only stretching the restrictions of any possible categorization but transporting listeners around the world as reggae and dub flow into bossa nova and samba.
OnMilwaukee.com staff writer Maureen Post grew up in Wauwatosa. A lover of international and urban culture, Maureen received a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
After living on the east side of Madison for several years, Maureen returned to Milwaukee in 2006.
After a brief stint of travel, Maureen joined OnMilwaukee.com as the city’s oldest intern and has been hooked ever since. Combining her three key infatuations, Milwaukee’s great music, incredible food and inspiring art (and yes, in that order), Maureen’s job just about fits her perfectly.
Residing in Bay View, Maureen vehemently believes the city can become fresh and new with a simple move across town.
