On one fateful evening of exotic grooves and cocktails over a decade ago at the legendary 18th Street Lounge, Rob Garza and Lounge co-conspirator Eric Hilton met and redefined themselves as the international DJ and production duo Thievery Corporation. In the process they created one of the world's most influential record labels: ESL Music. Originally established to deliver the sounds of Thievery Corporation to the world, unencumbered by rigid major label boundaries, ESL Music quickly expanded its artist roster to encompass the duo's globally oriented tastes. From the outernational sounds of Thievery Corporation, the mod-breakbeats of Ursula 1000 and Chris Joss, the spy film and near eastern polyrhythms of Thunderball and The Karminsky Experience, the ethereal soundscapes of Blue States, the sinister atmospherics of Sofa Surfers, to the Latin soul and Afrobeat rhythms of Federico Aubele, Joe Bataan and Ocote Soul Sounds, ESL Music continues to offer exquisite sonic temptations for the discriminating ears of the music aficionado.