Album · Dreadzone
Second Light by Dreadzone
Second Light is an album by Dreadzone, released in 1995. 4 songs from it have charted on rock radio countdowns, with 4 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “Zion Youth”, on 1 list with a best position of #5.
Second Light, subtitled An Original Dreadzone Sound Adventure, arrived on Virgin in May 1995, the London outfit's second album and their first for the label after 360°. Formed by ex-Big Audio Dynamite drummer Greg Roberts and Tim Bran, Dreadzone had made their name on stage, and here they take their dub-and-samples engine on a tour of the whole map: Celtic lilts, Indian flavours, spoken poetry, all bolted onto heavyweight basslines and electronic pulse.
The idea was big and generous, a portrait of modern multicultural Britain with Michael Powell's films and the Festival of Britain era as touchstones. Earl Sixteen lends his voice, and the tour behind it drew a crusty army. "Zion Youth" led the singles, "Little Britain" became a Top 20 hit, and John Peel was so smitten that six of its tracks made his 1995 Festive Fifty; in 1997 he ranked it his 12th favourite album ever. It remains their most successful record.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from Second Light on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zion Youth | 1 | #5 | – | 1995 | |
| 2 | Little Britain | 1 | #23 | – | 1995 | |
| 3 | Captain Dread | 1 | #35 | – | 1995 | |
| 4 | Life, Love & Unity | 1 | #48 | – | 1995 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.