CZARFACE

Under the guise of strutting superhero Czarman, Wu Tang Clan member Inspectah Deck and Boston underground hip-hop duo 7L & Esoteric teamed up in 2011 to create a gangsta rap fantasy world full of comic book capers, Tarantino violence and old skool swagger.

The trio originally worked together in 1999 on the single 'Speaking Real Words', but when they came together again for the 7L & Esoteric album '1212' their nerdish interests and quirky sense of humour combined to create the character of Czarman as the protagonist for the track '12th Chamber'. The idea grew into a self-titled album in 2013 and with Inspectah Deck and MC Esoteric competing with bragging rhymes and pop culture references while 7L provided the boom bap beats and retro production, the record was received by critics as a playful throwback to 1990s street culture. Follow-up 'Every Hero Needs a Villain' featured guest appearances from Method Man, Juju and GZA and reached number 15 in the US Hip-Hop Charts and their sound grew further with the screeching guitar licks of Mother Mother's Jeremy Page on 'A Fistful of Pain' in 2016.

Always brazenly cocksure and cartoonishly daft, the project took on new life when masked, eccentric rap star MF Doom (himself a self-styled hip-hop super villain) joined the group for 2018 album 'Czarface Meets Metal Face'. With contributions from Vinnie Paz and Open Mike Eagle and artwork by L'Amour Supreme, the album featured apocalyptic mood swings, bassy, throbbing backbeats and dancehall soundclashes, and was widely acclaimed as their finest work.