Sage Francis

Sage Francis is from the Sean Daley school of underground hip-hop, full of tempered anger and frontier spirit. Kicking off with "Buzz Kill," the first track on A Healthy Distrust, Francis exhibits true grit through sarcasm, spitting, "I used to think that rappers had it figured out/Brass Monkey, St. Ides, Old English, and Guinness Stout." Idiosyncratic singer-songwriter Bonnie "Prince" Billy turns up for "Sea Lion," making for the best hip-hop/rock collaboration since the Gorillaz' "Clint Eastwood." Francis brags that he's an "Escape Artist," dismisses himself as a "Dance Monkey," and claims on "Lie Detector Test," "I'm a poor man's version of a rich man." This Clear Channel-hating, aggressively intellectual package should appeal to college kids around America who wish they could rap like a latter-day Robert Lowell.

Related Content

• J. Edgar: Clint Eastwood's inspired take on a 20th-century giant
  November 10, 2011
• Five Other Famous Body Parts That Deserve Twitter Accounts
  February 28, 2012
• Best Lothario Films: Eight Movie Womanizers
  December 1, 2011
• Best films of 2011
  December 29, 2011
• Five Things We Learned From Super Bowl XLVI
  February 6, 2012

More About

• Sage Francis
• Sean Daley
• Clint Eastwood
• Hip-Hop and Rap
• Wildlife

Like this Story?

Sign up for the Music Newsletter: Keep your thumb on the local music scene with music features, additional online music listings and show picks. We'll also send special ticket offers and music promotions available only to our Music Newsletter subscribers.

Privacy Policy Cancel Continue