Oregon Music News: Oregon’s all-genre music magazine since 2009

04/24/2019

Ceschi plays the Bit House Saloon 4/22/2019 - Review

By C. FRANCIS O'LEARY // Hip-hop artist Ceschi arranged what he called a mini-fest as part of his Sad, Fat Luck Tour to promote the release of his album of the same name. Monday night’s show was particularly meaningful to fans, as it is likely to be the last time Ceschi headlines a show in Portland. 

For more than five-and-a-half hours on Monday night, April 22 music was pumping out of the Bit House Saloon. Hip-hop artist Ceschi (pronounced chess-key) arranged what he called a mini-fest as part of his Sad, Fat Luck Tour to promote the release of his album of the same name. Monday night’s show was particularly meaningful to fans, as it is likely to be the last time Ceschi headlines a show in Portland. The artist has announced that he is retiring from solo music this year after releasing a trio of albums, of which Sad, Fat Luck is the first.

Ceschi released his first solo album, Fake Flowers, in 2004. Since then he’s co-founded the Fake Four record label, released four more solo albums and collaborated with a long list of underground hip-hop and punk artists. More than anything, his career has been defined by the pushing of boundaries. To call Ceschi simply a hip-hop artist is too restrictive a description. Imagine a healthy mix of hip-hop, punk, indie and folk music and you’ll have a better understanding of all he’s capable of.

Sad, Fat Luck clearly shows evidence of Ceschi’s resistance to genre. The greatest example can be found on “Take It All Back, Pt. 1-4.” Between verses the song segues suddenly from trap beats to acoustic guitar and back with comparable shifts in vocal styles. The album also has tracks like “Any War,” a punchy rap song backed by horns and snares, followed up by “Downtown,” a dreamy track, heavy on synth and strings. Rounded out with features by Sammus and Astronautalis, the album has serious underground chops.

To book a mini-fest with a total of seven acts on a Monday night was a risk. To fit in that many acts, the first opener, Ruune, started their set as soon as the doors opened at 8 p.m. hERON, True Deceiver, Billy Woods, Televangel, and Dark Time Sunshine also played before Ceschi took to the stage around midnight. The show was structured such that hERON played one song between each of the other opening acts. As a result, including set-up time, what could have been a 20-minute set took more like 40 minutes throughout the night. All the opening acts performed well, but with a total runtime of nearly six hours, most fans had to pick and choose which parts of the show they were going to be there for.

When Ceschi took to the stage, just before midnight, the energy in the room palpably increased. Already fantastic tracks were improved further by being performed by a seven-piece band with backup vocals. When Ceschi waded into the crowd, rather than pull back, people drew in to be closer to the performer. During the performance of “Any War,” the band’s drummers left the stage and stood on tables to the side of the audience, where they banged out a marching beat. The crowd was jumping around, singing along, cracking jokes and generally having a hell of a time. For the last song of the night, Ceschi was joined on stage by his brother and Fake Four co-founder, David Ramos. Ceschi and co. ensured that if it does end up being his last show in PDX, it’ll be one the fans remember.

Ceschi’s last two albums are scheduled to be released this year, with Sans Soleil available on July 4 and Bring Us the Head 0f Francisco False on November 4. Keep an eye on Ceschi at @ceschi to see if he’ll be returning to Oregon one last time. To read more about those albums and why Ceschi has decided to end his solo career, check out this article. Those willing to make the drive can catch Ceschi in Seattle on Friday, April 26 with special guest Kimya Dawson. The show will be at the Hi Dive at 8 p.m. 21+. $15.

Setlist:
Lost Touch
Jobs
Sad, Fat Luck
The Gospel
Take It All Back Pts. 1-4
Daybreak
Frank Propose
Say Something
Say No More
Electrocardiographs
Sans Soleil
Any War
Downtown
Middle Earth
Bona Drag Tape
All Dogs Go To Heaven
Forever 33
This Won’t Last Forever
Kurzweil (feat. David Ramos)

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