I recently listened to an album called Lexanther, Vol. 1 by my current favorite rapper, Sleep Sinatra. As I was first hearing it, I reacted in real time on Twitter. I praised the album in a thread, and at one point I got a seemingly completely unrelated response from someone I didn’t know. It was basically him sending me his music and asking me to check it out. Normally something like that might annoy me, but the manner in which he approached it was very straightforward and respectful, so I was like fuck it. I gave it a spin, and… Well, uh… Yeah, I’m writing about it now, so as you can guess I really liked it. I don’t really know anything about this guy other than him being from Sacramento. If I had to guess from his Twitter presence I’d say he might be an acquaintance of q no rap name, but I don’t know for sure. So yeah, he sent me this album and I was pleasantly surprised that it ended up being fire, and I definitely wanna make sure it doesn’t get overlooked by y’all. I do have to admit that I may not have listened to this album had it not been for the intriguing title and cover artwork. It accomplishes this specific phenomenon that I really appreciate where the artwork looks like it was created with a very low budget, but it still ended up being fire. It was released at the end of July last year. I’m not sure who produced all these tracks. I think I heard a producer tag on the last song, but I don’t know to whom it belongs. I’m just gonna assume most of this is self produced, but I may be completely wrong. Correct me if you know.

The opening track is a kind of ominous intro. Well, the instrumental in the background sounds ominous to me. The clip that contains a man speaking isn’t very unsettling. It sounds pretty tame. I’m not gonna pretend that I was able to extract much meaning out of what was being said, but I also don’t really mind this intro being here at all. I think it works. I’m pretty indifferent towards it.

Once Cold War started I was pretty much hooked immediately. The instrumental sounds like a less abrasive version of something DOS4GW would make. The percussion hits really nicely, and it is kinda the backbone of the instrumental in my opinion. Vocally, the closest comparison I can make to IBN is I guess Lord OLO. Their voices are similar in my opinion. I’m not saying they’re identical, but he was one of the only rappers that I thought of when I listened to this. They don’t rap the same way at all in my opinion. I guess I also got some very slight Mach-Hommy vibes as well, but just from his voice. IBN’s flow on this track is very catchy, and that along with his voice and vocal delivery are pretty much the main appeal for me. That’s not to say that the lyrics aren’t good because they are very dope. The flow is just the main thing that sells me on the song. It’s not like a super intricate, flashy flow. It just works really well. IBN did what the beat called for, and I think he slid. I guess I should describe the instrumental a little better for people who aren’t familiar with DOS4GW. It has a very “mechanical” sound, if that makes sense. It sounds like what would play in my head if the world ended and got taken over by evil robots. The song is very dope. As much as I enjoyed this song, I wasn’t completely convinced that this would be a dope album yet. Like, this could’ve been a fluke. It was completely plausible for this to be the only enjoyable song on the project. That didn’t end up being the case though.

The following song, Benchwarmers, is even better in my opinion. The beat here isn’t super unconventional or out there, but it’s still a very good sample-based instrumental. IBN himself is what makes this song interesting though. His flow and vocal delivery just sound perfect over this loop.

I don't make up fake haters just to make a rhyme
I don't need no song to put me on 'cause I'ma shake for mine
I don't want the throne, we slew the king, we lettin' nature ride
God water Earth, I'm just a mirror of what they provide
You see, the picture get clearer when you take your time
I noticed that niggas act weirder when you make your mind
I knew way before the nigga ordered he gon' take the swine
Fourth quarter water break, you niggas finna break the pine

The whole song is one verse, but it’s so well written and performed that I can’t help but love it. I think this song’s dope as hell.

Track 4 is called Take My Mind, and this was the song that pretty much convinced me that I had to write about this album. I really can’t praise this track enough. This is definitely the best song on the project, and one of the best songs of 2025 period. First of all, whoever produced this track deserves a standing ovation. The instrumental here is very melodic and emotional-sounding. I think this is probably the best song lyrically as well.

Art mimics life, but they can't mimic me
Every nigga knockin' at the door don't get a key
Every nigga workin' on his J don't fit the team
Every prime number is in nature's chemistry

Not only are the verses very well written and performed, but even just the lyrics in the hook are honestly really beautiful. I can’t tell if the singing is a sample or if it was done by IBN himself. Or maybe it’s both, and he’s singing along with the sample. It sounds like there may be some vocal effect he’s using, but it sounds excellent.

Titles, kingdoms, luxury
These old things ain't enough for me
When I'm gone please close my eyes
Keep my soul, please take my mind

This is one of my favorite songs I’ve heard in a long time right now. It’s been in heavy rotation. I think it’s dope as fuck. Stuff like this is why I can’t wait to see what IBN does next, and I’m hoping to see him make some moves in the next few years.

The following track is called Prime Moss, and it’s got a pretty nice sample-based loop. I actually think that IBN’s rapping here is even better than it is on the preceding material, at least in terms of his flow. It feels more intricate than a lot of the earlier songs. One thing I haven’t mentioned up to this point is the fact that all of the songs on this album are very short. There’s only one song here that exceeds two minutes in length. This one in particular, Prime Moss, does kinda feel more like an interlude than a full song to me, but most of the others feel more fleshed out. I do like this song though, especially the way the beat kinda evolves for the very end of the track. It’s pretty good stuff.

Track 6 is a very short interlude called The Folly of Words, which I assume comes from either a street interview with someone or maybe a scene from a movie. I don’t know. However, my interpretation of what’s being said in this track is that it’s kinda about the idea of walking the walk versus talking the talk. Just like with the intro, I don’t really get that much meaning out of this track, but I don’t mind it being here at all. It’s less than 20 seconds long.

The following track is called Mud Castles, and it’s easily the longest song on the album. This one actually exceeds two and a half minutes, which is cool. This song is very similar to Benchwarmers in my opinion. It’s structured pretty much the same way, and IBN basically recycled the same flow from that song as well. I do enjoy it, mainly because I think the lyrics are pretty good. If the writing wasn’t interesting to me I would probably think this was mediocre, but it’s clear that the lyrics are a major part of the appeal based on the structure and presentation. It wouldn’t make sense to make a song like this if the lyrics weren’t important. Overall, this isn’t a favorite of mine on the album, but I do still enjoy it a good amount.

The next song, Datura, is another one of my favorites. A lot of it is because of the production honestly. It’s not like a super complexed, ambitious instrumental. The loop is just really good. It has this energetic atmosphere to it that just evokes a sense of urgency. I was also just very intrigued by the title of this song. If I come across a song called Datura, I’m gonna wanna hear it. As I was listening to this album, part of me was worried that Take My Mind would be the only obvious major highlight, but this song is excellent as well. This might be the best rapping from IBN up to this point on the album. The whole verse is flames.

Datura seeds in a handmade bag
I tried to slip through the system, nearly lost my path
I doubled back through the brimstone
The hell and the wind storm
Grandma's apothecary, a porch I can sit on
Coordinate my rhythms
Orchestrate a mission
I can't do no politickin' 'cause it's history
I can hear 'em yellin' "woke," but they spirit sleep
The beat like the pilgrim, the flow like a guillotine
Skin took the sunshine, you lookin' at the chemistry
You could take my life, but you can never take my energy

Structurally, this song doesn’t differ from most of the others. It just feels like it has a different type of energy to it. The uptempo production seems like it brought something different out of IBN. The song’s dope as hell.

There’s one more interlude called You Don’t Have to Be Virtuous Just Be Quiet, which is less than ten seconds long. This one’s definitely from a movie because I can recognize Samuel L. Jackson’s unmistakable voice. I’m not much of a movie guy though, so I can’t say I know what film this is from. I also can’t say what it’s significance on this album is, or why it got its own track. I feel like this audio could’ve been tacked onto the end of the preceding track, or even played over the instrumental as the outro. I don’t care though. It’s fine.

The penultimate track is called Submission. In terms of production alone, this is probably my least favorite on the album, but it’s not bad. I think it works pretty well. Once IBN actually started rapping I warmed up to it a bit more. I really like his performance here.

I used to think structure would tarnish my superpowers
I used to think calming the storm would suit-and-tie us
Watching for a con with confidence through the fire
But niggas too fly to be tied, go do the science

I really like the cadence he employed for the hook too. His flow is very straightforward; he’s not doing anything too flashy or intricate. It’s very well done though. His vocal delivery sounds good with this flow. It’s a dope track.

The closing track is called Infinite, and this is another one of my favorites. The beat is very dope, and I really like IBN’s approach to writing and flowing here. The lyricism here is much more anaphoric than any of the others.

Infinite like the photo of a lynched man
Infinite when you finna get your lick back
Infinite when your karma turn to quicksand
Infinite like the truth when you feel that
Infinite when you feel 'em, but they left Earth
Infinite like you're divin' in head first
Infinite like you don't know yourself
So your heart and your spirit and your mind tied to net worth

I really align with every sentiment expressed in this song, especially the last few lines of the verse. I also really like how aggressive and almost shouty his delivery is on this song. This is the most energetic performance from him on the whole album. Again, it’s one of my favorite tracks. I think it’s dope as hell.

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^{This album is great to me. I really enjoy every song here. Projects like this make me really happy. The best feeling ever is when I decide to check out a super random, obscure album that seemingly nobody has heard, and it actually ends up being fire. Not just good, but FIRE. I love when I’m checking an artist out for the first time, and I think to myself “how are they not more famous?” Again, I couldn’t really find any information about IBN at all. His name is ungoogleable, and he doesn’t seem to be on Instagram. The only things I have right now are his Bandcamp and his Twitter page (which is Ibncorsair for those who need it). This dude almost makes me feel like this is an alter-ego of a more established artist because he doesn’t sound anywhere close to being an amateur. Well, actually… Okay, with all that said, even though he clearly is very talented, I don’t necessarily think that MEGACHURCH is a super cohesive product. It kinda sounds like a really, really awesome demo tape. It’s less than twenty minutes long, and there’s only one track longer than two minutes. Three of the eleven tracks are interludes, none of which had any easily identifiable relevance. I think that the title and cover art do kinda fit some of the lyrical themes, but there doesn’t seem to be a hardline concept or narrative. IBN isn’t a super technical over the top lyricist with crazy bars or anything. He just comes off like a smart, likable dude who’s good at making songs. That’s not to say that he can’t rap though because he definitely can. Like I said, he doesn’t sound like an amateur. I hope you guys check this project out and are as enthusiastic about it as I am. I’d love to see this dude go on to work with some of the other artists I like to write about. I do kinda like that there aren’t any features here though. For such a brief project, you’re gonna wanna showcase as much as your ability as you can, so I’m glad he didn’t give that space to someone else. I would like to know who made these beats though if it isn’t self-produced. Anyway, check it out and let me know what you think in the comment section. It’s a very dope album to me.}

Favorite Song: Take My Mind
Least Favorite Song: Mud Castles