The Scope: The continuing emergence of Adelaide’s Pagen Elypsis crew sees the release of Red October.

Afore Mentioned are a crew within a crew. The duo of Purpose and Motive are integral parts of the larger Pagen Elypsis collective of artists. Red October is not a mixtape, as all its tracks feature original beats in an unmixed format, nor is it an album as it is available for free. This is an old fashioned street release, a snapshot of the talent the duo has in order to get their name out to the public and create anticipation for their future work. Coming from the battle scene to the recording studio has never been an easy step but Afore Mentioned have nailed it. Purpose already had impressed on his own mixtape and he delivers quality here. Motive is a little less known but he more than holds his own throughout, proving he too is an MC to follow. The two MCs rip Dig A Bit Deeper, one of the best tracks I’ve heard this year, head a bit deeper on When I’m Gone and start the party with Purple Drank. On the beats Purpose brings a lot more skill than I think anyone is expecting, heavy on the instrumentation and with the typical Adelaide soul flavour it is a highlight.

The Wrap: Adelaide is running hip hop in 2008 and it looks as if nothing will change for a long time to come.

Shane Scott