Customer Reviews

DJ Kicks

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Knowing that Thievery Corporation comes from Washington D.C. speaks volumes. Our nations capitol home to "the rat race" where everyone works for the government or knows someone who does. Looking less like groovy fashion conscious DJs and more like Pentagon workers who have unbuttoned their collars and rolled up their shirt sleeves for a night of lounge going and DJ kicks, Garza and Hilton perfectly reflect a rhythmic fusion of big city grooves. Thievery burns a hot late night groove filling it with Global Lounge, Jamaican Dub, Eastern Indian Ambience, Brazilian Bossa Nova and London Grooves. It's all perfectly cohesive with an inspiring yet diverse mix. Playful with Tropicando by Les Baxter infused with a spice like Jassanova's Fedime's Flight and rounded up with a sleepy dub by Dual Tone. This is pure sophistication groovy and seductive. Light candles and incense mmmm...enjoy. This cd is addictive spin after spin.

I Love this CD. Thievery Corporation's foray into the DJ Kick's series is a classic one as it has the sounds that makes ESL label so great. It's as though Thievery Corp. were honored to make this album and you can simply feel it by the tunes selected and the flow of the cuts. On a label (K7) that's done DJ Kicks by everyone from Smith & Mighty to DJ Cam to Kruder Dorfmiester to Carl Craig as well as release albums by Tosca, Ursula Rucker and several other artists, they do know a thing or two about DJ's and mixing.

The first track had me - Les Baxter's "Tropicando"... you may remember this old school easy jazz cut from a docker's commercial in 2000 or the late nineties where the dude is at a dinner table, thinks these two lovely ladies are moving up his leg with their feet only to find out that it's actually the mister across the table that's infatuated (yikes...). But then you have a smooth flowing Forest Mighty Black track titled "Rebirth" that'll get the party going with a old styled guitar in the background & a electronic samples. It's a compost thing. Then you have Da Lata's samba influenced "Beija Flor", and this came out at a time before Songs from the Tin, so when you hear the beat heavy "Ponteio" just know that neither cut is on their debut album. Fun-Da-Mental's collab. with them in "Mother Africa" is the perfect prelude to Indian Ambiance with the electrifying "Rainbow" following it up. The beats don't stop there... Karminsky Experience's "Exploration" was a sort of anthem in 1999... so simple and so great, sitar spashes throughout. "Coming From the Top" follows and that track... if I were a boxer that would be my intro music to every fight.

Those are only a handful of the tracks. Rockers Hi-Fi, Jazzanova, Lazy Boy, DJ Cam and a few others have some smokin' tracks in what is IMO one of the best DJ comps ever put out. I was always a fan of ESL, picking up Sounds from the Thievery Hi-Fi a long long time ago but this one made me want to actually check out the DC lounge for myself. DEFINITELY check this out. It's a bit older and it does have a sort of India vibe to it that maybe not everyone will dig, but I still love this release and the consistency of the cd warrant the international ambience. And if you do enjoy this be sure to check out ESL's other works, from "Sounds from the Hi-Fi" all the way up to "Outernational Experience". And be sure to take a look at some of the many other greats on their label, like Karminsky Experience, Ursula 1000 and Desmond Williams just to name a few.

This mix is simply the most complete, seamless musical journey I have ever heard on a compliation CD. The way to listen to this CD is on a long drive when you won't be interrupted. Turn it up nice an loud and play it from beginning to end! Beginning from a subtle lounge sound that is reminiscent of tropical islands, it moves on to grooves with eastern flavor provided by sitar riffs, and then into some subtle reggae flava. By the time you are half way into this mix, you realize that it is shifting gears and the tempo becoming more feverish, finally arriving to driving house rythmns that highlight drumbeats. It is an amazing journey. Thievery Corporation are head and shoulders above the hordes of DJ's doing compilation CD's. They are true creative musicians who really know music and how to blend it together to make one solid mix from beginning to end. It really shows on this DJ Kicks CD.

Globalisation is upon us. To those that say electronica/acid jazz is boring and monotonous, give this group a chance and have your mind changed for you. The duo's ability to blend musical sytles and cultures from at four continents (at least)and unite them with the global electronica dance theme is unique to say the least. Oddly enough, the best track on the album for me is the incredible "a forest mighty black" "rebirth" which is one of the more "London groove" tracks on the cd. The cd starts, sensually with a Cubanesque/bossa nova hybrid of a song and before long kicks into a very grooving Bossa nova beat with the odd "Bitchin Jamaican MC rapping away in the background". The last few songs of the cd are also woth the purchasing price alone. It is not all plain sailing though. Some of the eastern Indian mixes simply do not gel with the groovy background despite the duo's best efforts. You win some and you lose some when you are in the business of scavenging and recreating (the essence of electronica today)but this album won a whole lot more times than it lost. I'm pleased to own this cd.

Just when you thought that Eric Hilton & Rob Garza of the Thievery Corporation couldn't top "Sounds from the Thievery Hi-Fi," (Eighteenth Street Lounge Records, 1997) they drop "Thievery Corporation - DJ Kicks" on us! Amazing sh!t!

Run, don't walk to buy this great mix album which basically puts the Thievery Corp sound into one great mix. With amazing mixes of Jazzanova, Bobby Matos, DJ Cam, Up Bustle & Out, Rockers Hi-Fi, and many, many more- you won't be disappointed. Jazzy, global, groovy, downtempo, heavy beats, just amazing sounds.

I love the DJ Kicks series in general and I'd say this is even better than the Kruder & Dorfmeister - DJ Kicks and the DJ Cam - DJ Kicks, which is saying a lot for me.

Thievery Corporation have really created a vibe that is uniquely theirs. The closest one might get to a similar feel is maybe the new United Future Organization album "Bon Voyage" (Brownswood/Mercury Music, 1999) which was recently released in Tokyo to rave reviews.

UFO holds court in Tokyo and Thievery Corp. own Washington D.C. Get 'em both, I say!

...of fascinating mixes. I like their own work but find it occasionally repetitive - the reggae riffs in particular. But this album enchants with brilliant elaborations. I've had it for two years and haven't tired of it yet. Along with Kruder & Dorfmeister's mixes (including a great DJKicks contribution) - and the Byrne/Eno collaboration in My Life in the Bush of Ghosts - and many of the cuts in the Verve Remixed series - and some of DJShadow - Thievery's mix albums represent some of the most interesting pop/jazz/electronic music.

I listened to it first in the morning after a big party the night before, and as most of you would know, the morning-after headache is not very conductive to music. However Thievery Corporation was perfect. Mellow tunes that each has its own personality are perfect as background music and yet retain their originality for a closer more attentive listening session.

To be honest, writting this review wouldn't be necessary nor appealing than listening to the beats, background tempos, travelling but euphoric sounds that these two DJ's bring to the plate in DJ KICKS. I still haven't found many groups that can combine so much creative ingrediants that conclude in a miraje of authentic and original laid back beaks that can be played from sitting in your car from a late night to hanging with some old buds over a beer or whatever euphoric mind trip you decide to choose. If I were to cook to make DJ KICKS from scratch I would describe it of being: Tiny pinch of elevator music (I mean tiny), quarter cup Bosa Nova, half cup of mixed acid jazz and mellow modern day jazz, 1/3 electronica, with soothing international voices that I have never heard of.

I have been searching for albums as good as Kruder & Dorfmeister's DJ Kicks. When I first got this disk I wasn't convinced but now, after about 20 listens, it has got its hooks into me and I can proclaim if you love K&D's DJ Kicks you will love this too. Its a bit more eclectic taking in some world sounds but is definitely in the same headspace as the K&D DJ Kicks.

This album again deepens my love for Thievery Corporation. I heard about TC last month, and I have purchased six albums by them since. Their flavor from all over the world is captivating, their mixing is flawlessly seamless, their music is so relaxing. This is great music for driving and for studying, and it definitely is a favorite on my collection of music. Garza/Hilton have truly mastered their art, and I am looking forward to 'The Cosmic Game', which is released in February.

Also recommend all CDs by Thievery Corporation, Ursula 1000, and Zero 7.