Thievery Corporation rings in 2027 at The Independent

Two years after The Midway, the D.C. duo comes back to San Francisco for New Year's Eve in a 500-capacity room.

San Francisco has rung in the new year with Thievery Corporation before. Back in 2018 the Chronicle was previewing a two-night New Year's run at The Masonic. This time the countdown happens in a much smaller room: Thievery Corporation plays The Independent on Thursday, Dec. 31, with the show starting at 9 p.m.

The date was announced Oct. 29, and tickets are on sale through TicketWeb. The Independent holds about 500. For a band that has filled The Masonic on New Year's and played The Midway on its last visit, that's an unusually close way to spend midnight with them.

It's also the first time they've played the city since Sept. 7, 2024, at The Midway. More than two years is a long gap for a group with as deep a following here as this one.

Thievery Corporation is the project of Eric Hilton and Rob Garza, and over the years the music has moved from lounge-y downtempo into a much wider spread of world sounds — dub, bossa, Middle Eastern and Indian influences, rotating vocalists. That range is why it sits comfortably on a list of tags as broad as electronic, jazz and jam. It's party music that doesn't sound like everyone else's party music, which is exactly what you want on Dec. 31.

Thievery Corporation has done New Year's in San Francisco in a big hall. This one is 500 people and a countdown.

What's changed since the last visit: not a new band album, as far as we can find, but plenty of activity around the edges. Hilton released a solo record, A Sky So Close, in February, and the group has kept a full 2026 calendar, including a September show at YouTube Theater in Inglewood and a December date in Washington. San Francisco's turn closes out the year.

What to expect: a 9 p.m. start means the band will be on well before midnight, and the set should carry you through the turn of the year. The catalog is deep enough that there's no shortage of material, and Thievery shows tend to lean as much on groove and guest voices as on the hits. Plan your night around the countdown, not after it.

A practical note: New Year's Eve tickets in small rooms rarely last, and the end of the year in this city fills up quickly. If you want in, get the ticket before you make the dinner reservation.

The Independent is about as close as you'll get to this band. It's a fitting way to end a year — and start the next one.

Sources: Thievery Corporation at The Independent (JamBase) (jambase.com); Thievery Corporation – The Independent tickets (TicketWeb) (ticketmaster.evyy.net); Pop Quiz: Thievery Corporation, exploded from lounge into world music, plays New Year's in SF (SF Chronicle Datebook) (datebook.sfchronicle.com); Thievery Corporation at The Midway, San Francisco (PopMatters) (popmatters.com); Thievery Corporation's Eric Hilton talks musical roots (MusicRadar) (musicradar.com); Eric Hilton – A Sky So Close (Music Direct) (musicdirect.com); Thievery Corporation Stops At YouTube Theater on September 11, 2026 (youtubetheater.com); Thievery Corporation (Washington.org) (washington.org)