Dilated Peoples
Directors of Photography
Rhymesayers Entertainment
Dilated Peoples are back and to mark their 5th collaboration, the West coast’s finest Hip Hop crew have linked up with Rhymesayers Entertainment, offering new freedom for emcee’s Rakaa, Evidence and DJ Babu.
Dilated have hit the ground running with opening track ‘Directors’. The deep piano loop of which is more akin to early Mobb Deep drops big hints at what to expect from Directors of Photography. ‘Cut My Teeth’ is a homage to where this crew came from, with ‘Good As Gone’ proving that Dilated are still standing tall. Featuring beats from 9th Wonder, Diamond D and DJ Premier, the album holds serious depth and texture, but Aloe Blacc’s guest vocal appearance on radio friendly single ‘Show Me The Way’ is a sure wild card.
Evidence leads on the mic on the majority of the record and Rakaa is happy to let him shine. It’s clear Evidence has had room to grow as an artist after his solo album and the Lord Steppington release and Directors of Photography shows he’s massively upped the ante as an OG on the mic. Where the real harmony of Directors of Photography lays though, is with Babu’s seasoning of Hip Hop authenticity on the 1200s, providing a seamless link between all the tracks on the record.
Although this is a summer release, this feels like a winter album. The cold beats that ice over ‘The Dark Room’ frame the story telling with a a paranoid edge. This album also holds a constant photographic theme, inspiring the writing, scratches and samples to timecode their development and underline where Dilated are at in their lives and careers. Directors of Photography wont disappoint at any level – this is Dilated Peoples moment of truth, a must own for fans of any era of Hip Hop.
Philip Procter