Hypocrisy Is the Greatest Luxury

Although this group is long defunct, its one major recording will be fondly remembered for years--if not decades--to come. The Heroes consisted of rapper Michael Franti and percussionist Ron Tse; together, the San Francisco Bay area-based duo created a biting, politically savvy record that touched on both personal vulnerability and governmental venality. Franti used the microphone to preach about injustice, homophobia, materialism, and apathy. Although Public Enemy had long before established hip-hop's political potential, they never quite attained Franti's ability to translate black rage into universal themes. In the Heroes' best number, "Television, the Drug of the Nation," Franti raps, "Imagination is sucked out of our children by a cathode ray nipple / Television is the only wet-nurse that would create a cripple." Unfortunately, after extensive touring, the pair went their separate ways, Tse to a variety of solo projects and Franti to Spearhead. --Martin Johnson