I know I.D. as Ian. Ian is a weirdo. He takes pictures with hammers and says it's hammer time. He's hilarious and generally awesome in a totally abnormal way to the nincompoops who subscribe to society's convoluted definition of normalcy. When I met him, he was known as "that dude" of production. He rapped, too, with Will Bracy. We were all teenagers with a dream. We grew up. For a time, I.D. disappeared... the beats went dry. After Bracy & ID's project "Step in the Arena" dropped, the group also disappeared. Adulthood came with a vengeance, aiming to steal dreams and kill passions. I missed Bracy & ID and would often bug Ian to get off it, and go back to making music on a consistent basis. He'd smile and shake his head. Will was off becoming an even greater producer, and Ian had taken up photography and was getting lots of jobs. I was stuck in the same purgatory that The Attik has had me in since they broke up. But I digress... and I only digress because Ian has once more relinquished himself to I.D. and made an instrumental album. Of sampled beats. See? It's all coming together. I'm not just talking. 8 tracks and 8 photos, Ian offers his two passions up together on a plate.
Ian is a samurai. He starts of wielding his production sword with a track called "Don't Forget Film." I like it, it is brief, and a good intro. I am optimistic. The next track "Portrait (Ian)" definitely takes me back to Ian's days of production from the BUMP/Famillite days. Bay Area Music Project has been teaching young folks how to produce, rap, and sing for years, and Ian, now an instructor in the program, was once a student. For nostalgia's sake, I like it, but I wish there was more switch up. I'll warn you now... this is my general complaint on most of the tracks. "Looking At My Negatives" is one of my favorite tracks on the album. Why? Because it clearly evokes emotion. It's these kinds of beats where I feel I.D. shines. The switch-up is perfect, and I don't even want anyone to rap over this beat. I also like the fact that he plays with time signature on this beat. It's on the level with the beat he produced for Do DAT's "Oakland in Blue" album called Color Scheme. "Aperture (Depth of Field)" is a track that I'm just not feeling... it has that dated feel, and takes me back to the 90s when I don't wanna go. A track I'd skip. "Landscapes" is interesting to me because, in my opinion, it shows where I think I.D. could go production-wise if he stepped away from sampling and came up with original instrumentation. It makes me hopeful, but is also annoying, since for me, I can tell that I want to listen to whatever the original song is for the beat MORE than the beat itself. "Flash" makes me feel like the previous track did, to a lesser extent. Again... provokes nostalgia, so I have a soft spot for this track. "Let's Develop (Jazmynae)" is another favorite from the project. If I.D. just HAS to sample... let it only come from the most intense of feelings. The project closes out with "Rise of the Digital," a track that any party could flip and go old school to. I like it because it shows Ian's musical ear is not simply hip-hop based. This brings in an element of funk, too. Overall, Cameras and Music didn't tickle my fancy on the most outstanding level ever... but it did pique my interest... and it did feed the beast that wants I.D. to make music. Ah well... guess you'll just have to make another one, Ian! CLICK THE PIC BELOW TO CHECK OUT CAMERAS AND MUSIC & DOWNLOAD IT FOR FREE.
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