Here we have a limited double A side 7″ from The Secret Life of Sound, featuring two tracks from Radius, a Chicago based beatmaker.  The A-side, titled “9:11 Apollyon,” is a flute driven vocal track, featuring Chicago MC’s I.B. Fokuz and Gilead 7, who make up the group Advent.  This track reminds me of most independent underground hip hop tracks from the midwest, similar to Typical Cats, Rhymesayers, etc.   Dark sounds with intricate rhymes.  Definitely mix tape or college mix show material.  According to The Secret Life of Sound website, this beat was originally used on a mix tape called “Ill Noise Redux.”  This also features a bonus beat on the A-side, a simple, kick snare hat piece.  First thing that popped in my head when I heard this was the wild style classic “Subway Theme.”  Load it in your digital software and loop that shit for maximum impact!

The AA side, titled “Standing on Pluto (In My Peacoat),” is definitely the winner in my book.  An instrumental piece of almost 5 minutes, Radius uses a classic drum break, chopped, looped, and delayed quite well, and what sounds like a spaced out rhodes & guitar sample with which he utilized the “16 levels” function on the MPC to create a melody.  He also uses some vocal speeches/dialogue to add effect.  I say throw this joint on in an early bboy circle and let cats bug out to the drums, or play it while flying down the 110 freeway at 2am.

If you’re diggin the sounds, make sure to check out the newest release from Radius, titled “Sleeping Wide Awake,” which is available as a free download courtesy of Moment Sound.

WORLDWIDE READERS:

Want to win a copy of this Radius 7″?  Tell us what drums were sampled in “Standing on Pluto.”

(The answer MUST be posted on our website blog wall below – 1st correct answer wins)