4 Hero - Golden Age of Life

Since Rachel posted a tune by this year's Mercury Prize winners Franz Ferdinand, and I posted earlier a tune by 2004 nominee TY, I thought I'd dip back into Mercury Prize history for a 1998 nominee that is going stronger than ever. Producers Mark Mac and Dego are the brains behind 4 Hero. They started out in hip-hop, then became one of the leading early acts in the UK hardcore/rave scene, which they eventually helped evolve into drum and bass. Never content to stay in one sound for too long, Mark and Dego caught onto the emerging interest in mixing 60s and 70s jazz influences with world beats and Detroit techno. This would eventually be known as broken beat. The 1998 double LP "Two Pages" finds 4 Hero taking drum and bass in two different directions: a Minnie Ripperton/Mahavishnu Orchestra sound on the first half, dark, tech-ish breakbeats on the second half. Enjoy "Golden Age of Life," track 2 on "Two Pages," featuring Carol Crosby on lead vocals along with a six-piece "soul choir" and a 15-piece orchestra.