From his humble beginnings as a rapper in Anonymous Inc. and Toca to his fronting of metal band Dead By Wednesday and the folk-hop genius of his second solo album They Hate Francisco False, Franciso ‘Ceschi‘ Ramos has shown little regard for musical norms. Add to this the ownership of indie label Fake Four Inc. and it might appear that the Connecticut native is spreading himself too thin, but judging by the quality of Ceschi’s solo work, this is far from the case.
Ceschi’s real strength is his voice, which can turn on a dime from machine-gun rapping to smoother singsong tones. It is a voice in many ways comparable to Yoni Wolf (Why?) in its versatility and strength. Ceschi, however, has a much tighter flow, best exemplified in “Not Sure” (“And my history teacher told me that I wouldn’t / amount to be anything close to what I would like to be / and I would dissolve with the rest of the bacteria / in the world / flipping burgers in Jersey”).
Almost as schizophrenic as his voice, Ceschi’s music flits between folk ditties (the 50-second gem that is “Optical Illusion”) and Anticon-style alt hip hop beats (“Shame”). It’s an interesting contrast that works far better than it should, and really never stops being engaging.
Currently working on the debut Deadpan Darling album with Blue Sky Black Death, Ceschi still regularly tours his solo material in the US. I certainly advise you – with utmost sincerity – to check him out. Start now. Download the track, watch the video below, whatever: you won’t be disappointed.
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Matthew Healy is a musician and student in Edinburgh. 
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