Eighteenth Street Lounge Music (ESL Music) is a record label based in Washington, D.C. founded by Rob Garza and Eric Hilton in 1996. The duo, as Thievery Corporation, heads the label’s roster of artists.
The label quickly grew and their artist roster built on Thievery Corporation's globally oriented tastes that often incorporated cinematic overtones—noticeably found in the music of The Karminsky Experience and Thunderball. You'll also find the mod-breakbeats of Ursula 1000 and Chris Joss, the ethereal soundscapes of Blue States, the sinister atmospherics of Sofa Surfers, and the Latin soul and Afrobeat rhythms of Federico Aubele, Joe Bataan and Ocote Soul Sounds. Newcomers to ESL include the production outfit Ancient Astronauts whose music is a melting pot of funk, dub reggae, and pure unadulterated hip-hop courtesy of a host of collaborators.
One might characterize much of the music on ESL as "downtempo" or "loungecore," at least, generally speaking. ESL music can be found on the plethora of compilations of this genre (beyond those released on ESL) which emerged in the late 90s and into the early part of this decade. As that genre has faded quite a bit in recent years, the artists and music on the highly-branded, ultra stylish ESL label not only survived, but thrive today.
Coconut Rock by Ocote Soul Sounds & Adrian Quesada
Release Date: June 23, 2009
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We Are to Answer by Ancient Astronauts
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Amantoria by Federico Aubele
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