Remixes usually fall into two distinct categories. There are the imaginative re-arrangements, designed specifically to breath new life into the original and to treat the remix as a production job unto itself. And there are the 'lazy mixes' that seek merely to enhance visibility and sales by associating a reputable (and marketable) name to the original - these involve minimal studio tweaking. 4 Hero fall emphatically into the former arena.
Over the years they have approached their re-workings with sensitivity and skill, adopting the work of others as their own project and creating a bank of sought after tunes in the process. Fans then, can only rejoice, dribble, and rejoice again at this collection, which showcases not only some of the best examples of their remix magic, but also features a whole CD dedicated to other people's mixes of 4 Hero's own cuts.
The mood is set on the first CD with their masterful makeover of MAW's "Black Gold Of The Sun", which sounds as good now as it ever did. From this impressive audio Alpha the album untwists in polyrhythmic streams of characteristically colourful warmth. Courtney Pine's "I've known Rivers", John Coltrane's "Naima", Goldie's "Inner City Life", Ultra Nate's "Twisted", Marcos Valle's "Escape", Terry Callier's "Love Theme From Spartacus" - all are re-painted with 4 Hero's mega-textural and multi-dimensional palette. The overall effect is as refined, shimmering, intricate and diverse as any 4 Hero artist LP.
CD two sees their pals and peers take on some of their own classics. Bugz In The Attic provide a respectable reworking of recent anthem "Hold It Down", DJ Spinna and MAW take on "Starchasers" (and achieve very different results); MIST and King Britt flip the script on "9 by 9". Then there's IG Culture's solidly phuturistic vision of "Escape That".
What we find here, as with any 4 Hero release (single or LP) is a general reverence for, and deep knowledge of, black music filtered through the British urban experience. Whether tackling rump-slapping house, broken beats, weightless drum & bass, sub-tropical bossa nova or hip-hop head-nods, 4 Hero retain a superlative fluidity and natural-ness that puts them miles ahead of the competition.
by Paul Sullivan