It was a clear black night, a clear white moon
Buck 65 was in the theatre centre, trying to consume
Some skirts for the eve, so I can get some funk
Just rollin in my ride, chillin all alone
Just hit the west side of the queen street
On a mission trying to find Mr. Richard T.
Seen a car full of girls tryin to get their fix
All you skirts know what’s up with 416
That was how far I made it on my hip hop inspired review of Buck 65‘s excellent Summerworks show on Wednesday. Originally I was going to modify the lyrics to Warren G’s Regulate to review the show, but man, that is a hella long song and I lost interest pretty quickly. Sometimes I get great ideas, this wasn’t one of them. So back to the show.
Wednesday night’s Buck 65 showcase was probably one of the two most hyped up showcases for the Summerworks Music series in 2012 (Evening Hymns being the other one). A veteran of the music scene, Buck 65 seems to be the type of artist that would be playing venues a lot larger then the Theatre Centre (which was packed) so the opportunity to see him in this space was rather unique. Doubling the uniqueness was the fact that Buck 65 was preforming songs he has never/rarely ever performed live. There was no doubt this was going to be a special evening.
Unshackled by the restraints that would come from say, a conventional show, Buck 65 let lose a series of songs that shows what a versatile songwriter he is. The man laid his rap verses down over a variety of music – from traditional hip hop beats to thrashing guitar riffs to just about everything else. If anyone was to take away anything from this set, it is that the man is rather experimental when picking the music to go with his flow. Visually, Buck 65 was accompanied by a host of dancers who provided interesting arrangements on all the tunes. Joining Buck 65 for a few songs was Choir Choir Choir a Toronto collective that started off as a choir, but then figured out that they are pretty good and now put on shows. Their numbers with Buck 65 was especially good and added to the overall collaborative energy that is Summerworks.
Overall, it was great night at the Theatre Centre that featured creative visuals, epic story telling, unique collaborations and good music from the man they call Buck 65.