Review: Thievery Corporation at The Orange Peel
“They played that song! Let’s go.”
My friend wasn’t seriously suggesting that we leave The Orange Peel on May 16 after Thievery Corporation played “Lebanese Blonde” — the one song of theirs that we (and several others we’d consulted about the show) knew, courtesy of the monumental Garden State soundtrack that was released 20 years ago this summer.
But after Laura Vall sang the familiar lyrics, accompanied by Rob Myers’ comforting sitar strains, we were in unfamiliar territory a mere two numbers into the night.
We weren’t going anywhere, of course, and were soon glad that such thoughts weren’t remotely entertained. Not merely The Vall Show, Thievery Corporation’s set quickly became something we’d never before witnessed: a living mixtape with a new vocalist joining the five-piece band for each track.
The impressive steady flow showcased the ensemble’s diverse gifts across a range of styles from reggae to hip-hop to various other global sounds in between, doing their best to prove contributing rapper Mr. Lif’s assertion that the band is “the Wu-Tang Clan of world music.”
Is he right? Perhaps — Racquel Jones’ and Puma’s silky Jamaican vocals nicely round out their sound and the instrumentalists kept the rhythms cooking, likely drawing on more influences than my amateur ears could identify.
About a dozen songs in, Thievery Corporation then added to their repertoire with a seated, acoustic stretch, proving they can handle soft, slow stuff nearly as well as the big, upbeat productions. The assortment of traditions from one group proved a welcome change of pace and left no doubt that the crew was may more than merely “those guys with the song from that Zach Braff movie.”
(Photos by Justin Bowman)
