David is first and foremost a slave to the beat, he started playing the drums at 10 years old and by 15 had recorded his first full length record under the name 'Anonymous Inc'. Last year, at 24 years of age he was named one of 'Modern Drummer Magazines' top ten progressive drummers of today, a mighty feat for a lad who's been reading the publication since he was 12 years old.

Over the years David and his brother Ceschi have been the source of backing beats for a variety of artists with their bands 'Toca' and 'Anonymous Inc', they have collaborated with 'Aceyalone', 'Sole', 'Busdriver' and 'Dose One' to name but a few.

David's musical tastes are varied, a fact that becomes blindingly evident when perusing the 17 tracks on his solo debut 'This Up Here', which is set to drop May 27th, 2008 on Fake Four and Grimm Image Records.  The album is truly eclectic and features tunes that swing from Emo Folk , to Oakland rap, to Eastern European folk, to electro-pop with ease and suprisingly natural fluidity.

Over the years he has toured as part of the Hardcore metal band 'Dead By Wednesday' and opened up for bands such as 'Hate Breed' and 'Sick of it all'. At times you can feel traces of hardcore influence in his tunes, for example in the song 'Looked At', a tune that starts off sounding like a Eastern European marching band, and ends up smacking your head in with a riotous gunfire of a hardcore spiked chorus.

There are so many great songs on this record, 'Kings and Queens' is a personal favorite, bold and grand with layered synth and booming vocals. Another highlight is the song 'Full Face', a tune about a person finding out that his friend's mother has cancer -

"The oceans underneath your eyes look the way the bay does in the middle of the night" - 'Full Face'

- an unnerving song about dishonesty, regret, and betrayal, sung with passion and backed by some seriously solid drumming.

The record was recorded in David's basement and is brimming with experimental noise. Casio synth magic and scrappy drum machine sounds, jostle along side smoother organic sounding beats and scratchy vocals, which switch back and forth between singing and rapping lyrics. Most songs feature screamy choruses a la Sufjan Stevens, Danielson and Akron Family which give this record a warm psych-folk flavour (Check the tunes - 'Fate Of', 'Wax Fingers').

'This Up Here' is a beautiful collection of short and sweet songs, full of heartfelt lyrics, brutal honesty, hope and light.

David Ramos- If you dig these bands you'll dig this fella: 'Why?', Akron Family, Grizzly Bear,
Broken Social Scene, Subtle, CloudDead, Beriut or Greyskull.

VIDEO: 'Kings and Queens' -




This video was made by 'Popular Culture Shaman' using 8mm film footage of David's family recorded in the 1950's and 60's. The song is of a very personal nature and talks about his families life in Europe before they moved to America, the real family footage used is a lovely intimate and sensitive touch.

'This Up Here' is currently available for digital download for a steal through www.circleintosquare.com they'll also throw in some free remixes by 'Cars and Trains', Ernest Gonzalez and 'Omid'...So, what you waiting for?!!! Go get your copy!

Download | Duration: 00:03:03