The idea of most remix volumes is to take other people's licks, pump up the beats and create a louder, bolder whole. This isn't the case with borderline bossa nova maniacs Eric Hilton and Rob Garza, the two D.C. DJs who make up the Thievery Corporation. Dripping with big molasses-y bits of dub and marinated in the merengue, the Abductions and Reconstructions remix compilation lulls rather than bounces, each track slowly flowing into the next with nary an additional beat to make your heart race. Somehow, though, your heart jumps as the soothing strings, oozing reeds and brass roll along.
Kicks stays with the same dreamy, world-beat premise, but is a slightly funkier affair.
Here, the West Indian tabla-groove of Mathar collides with Dual Tone's humble dub. Voices homespun, close and far weave through the mix. Throughout the album, Thievery Corporation injects their own instrumentation on top of the samples. All rights reserved.