The first time I heard Thievery Corporation live was in 2003 at Billboard Live in Miami, a venue that no longer exists. I still remember the entrance. A mirror set into the floor reflecting colored lights from the ceiling, creating an endless tunnel effect before you even reached the stage. It felt futuristic. Built to impress.
Photo Credit: Resør – Official
They were opening for none other than Orbital, and the room was designed for impact. Screens, motion, scale. Yet what stayed with me was not the spectacle. It was the restraint. The music did not fight the room. It settled into it. Space felt intentional.
Years later, when Rob Garza joined us on the EG podcast, that same quality surfaced again. Tone before volume. Mood before immediacy. A commitment to subtle control rather than excess.
So when Eric Hilton turns his attention toward building an analog rotary mixer with RESØR, it does not read as a departure. It feels consistent.
Electronic music often treats gear as a marker of progress. New tools promise speed and louder output. This collaboration moves in the opposite direction. It begins with listening.
Rather than adapting an existing product, the mixer was shaped around how Hilton actually plays. Long sessions. Subtle blends. Flow without spectacle. The result feels closer to a hi-fi preamp than a club centerpiece.
Materials reflect that mindset. Solid mahogany. A restrained aluminum faceplate. Large round VU meters that encourage you to watch the signal breathe instead of chasing peaks. Inside, the philosophy continues. Discrete analog design. Components chosen for tone and balance. Knobs with resistance that reward patience. Nothing asks to be rushed.
Only fifty units exist. That detail matters less as a headline and more as a constraint. Small runs allow attention. Attention builds consistency. Consistency builds trust between builder and artist.
At Electronic Groove, we have watched formats shift for nearly two decades. Platforms change. Interfaces change. The cycle of updates never stops. What tends to endure is simpler. Artists who last return to the act of listening.
This project reflects that. Not as nostalgia. Not as luxury. As practice.
In a culture that often confuses volume with impact, Hilton and RESØR offer something quieter. An instrument designed to disappear once the music begins, leaving only the warmth of the signal behind.
For those who believe subtlety carries weight, that may be the real story here.
