What 4Hero Has Been Up To

4 Hero should need to introduction, and I am to lazy to give one. Between Mr. Dego McFarlane and Mark Mac, the 2 have made dance music history multiple times over. Seeing Dego DJ live in Sheffield, UK in 97 was one of the highlights of my time there - a breath of fresh air amongst the big beat and drumnbass of the time.

4Hero's last album may actually be their best. It captures those rare coveted 4Hero remixes I used to collect.... and for that reason I never bought it (or the Jazzanova or BITA remix albums). "The Action" by 4Hero f/ Ish aka Butterfly (yeah that one), remixed by the Visioneers (Mark Mac with Hopper and Somantik) is the one that I never did have. They've turned a throw away track off Two Pages LP into a jazz hip-hop classic. The Visioneers 4th and latest 7" on Omniverse is a live remake of the Pharcyde's "Runnin'."

Next is a should-be LA anthem, 4 Hero's remix of Plantilife's "When She Smiles She Lights the Sky." If you haven't copped Gilles Peterson's Worldwide Radio Show #1 album of the year "The Return of Jack Splash," you be asleep... or don't want to hear a better Outkast. Dego has also recently released another soul collab project, this time with Broken Beat don (and Bug) Kaidi Tatham called Silhouette Brown. The big cut and single is called "Spread That," it's out on new label Ether (also responsible for Gilles Peterson in Africa).

Finally, we have a semi-released cut from Mr. Mac from a project that immediately grabbed by attention. It's called the Chess Cadet Allstars, because Mac pulls almost exclusively from the the legendary Chicago label(s) (Charles Stephney, Minnie Ripperton, Ramsey Lewis, Howlin Wolf, Etta James, the Dells, etc.). This one is called "Simple Folk", and I ashamedly don't know where the sample comes from. But it is a beauty of a beat.

Supposedly 4Hero has a new album coming soon. The Visioneers is also supposed to come out. Til then you can hear Mark Mac, Somatik and others weekly radio show online at Nu Wave Radio