On PremRock & Willie Green's “Radio Dial”, Green crafts a vintage early Aughts underground battle track with an orchestral sample for dramatic effect and a snare that snaps so hard it sounds as though he's challenging Overcast-era ANT for ear-bleeding honors. Featuring Has-Lo, “Radio Dial” is PremRock rekindling his roots in an era of hip hop that bred militant purists with counter-culture opinions of radio waves. Enough time has passed since those days for “Radio Dial” to be a welcomed homage.
Blockhead's remix of “Radio Dial” also recalls that era, but in a different light – his own. While production styles were static and dramatic, Blockhead was progressive in method. His beats had movement and an identity that came from meshing Indian sitar samples with weird chops from children's records.The remix reminds us that he's still got one of the sharpest ears for samples, placing him among weirdos like Prince Paul and J-Zone who never cease to amaze in their obscure found sounds. Blockhead takes a literal approach to “Radio Dial” as though his dial turns are a time traveling machine. He's tuned his remix back to the origins of radio shows circa 1950. On the intro Has-Lo keeps asking for the station to switch, but Blockhead persists with his Tin Pan Alley jingle, leaving Has-Lo and PremRock little choice but to rock over his remix.
PremRock & Wilie Green's album is available now on iTunes.
