4hero

A welcomed stopgap that's heavy on tracks originally released in 1998 and beyond, The Remix Album evenly splits remixes of and by 4hero between two discs. It isn't thoroughly comprehensive, but it's a generous way to signal the duo's departure from Talkin Loud. The first disc is devoted to remixes of tracks by a wide range of artists including Ultra Naté, Marcos Valle, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Terry Callier, and Phil Asher's Focus; on the second disc, IG Culture's New Sector Movements, King Britt, Jazzanova, DJ Spinna, and Bugz in the Attic rework singles from 4hero's Two Pages and Creating Patterns albums. Unsurprisingly, the first disc is the more satisfying of the two, since you can hear how 4hero are capable of turning nearly anything into something that sounds like one of their own original productions. Some tracks work much better than others, naturally, but even the less successful inclusions (Scarface is a hopeless mismatch) are of some interest. The remix of Masters at Work's cover of Rotary Connection's "I Am the Black Gold of the Sun" is the brightest attraction, dropping out of the faithful arrangement three minutes in to break into an extended, string-drenched, Rhodes-enhanced drum'n'bass coda. The second disc is actually introduced by 4hero's bold take on Coltrane's "Naima," but it's fleshed out by a handful of overhauls that come surprisingly close to matching the original mixes. Greatest of all is the Bugz in the Attic mix of "Hold It Down," one of the broken beat scene's golden moments. Jazzanova, on the side of the coin, are a bizarre choice for "We Who Are Not as Others," and they respond by processing the menacing original into an unrecognizable blob of syrupy and slick fusion. Thankfully, this compilation is durable enough that it can sustain a couple blemishes like this one. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide