Buck 65

Thu 9th Sep, 2010 in Features

Nas is half man/half amazing, Jay-Z is rap’s Grateful Dead and Kanye is a monster; but Buck 65’s place on the hip-hop spectrum is slightly different. In his own words – on his regularly updated Twitter feed – Buck is the ‘Warren Oates of rap’ or the ‘Tits McGee of rap’ or even the ‘’what’s-his-face’ of rap’.

It’s unlikely we’ll ever see Buck 65 lurking in the guest list of a Kanye or Jay-Z record – no matter how many left-field Bon Iver, MGMT or Coldplay collaborations they indulge in. Like his friend, and sometime collaborator Sage Francis, Buck proves that there’s more scope in hip-hop than most punters think. “It’s funny because I’ve always thought of myself as quintessentially hi- hop. I’m a gigantic hip-hop nerd. But I’ve been aware of my ‘outsider status’ for a long time and I’ve had lots of time to think about it.”

Buck is extremely active on Twitter and recently posed the question “Back in ‘87, did rap records freak me out the way they did because they were crazy-amazing or because I was a kid?”, a question which seems to be a driving factor in his thoughts about hip-hop. Though he admits that there’s an inevitable nostalgia involved, he’s quick to campaign for the sounds of ’86: “God, ‘86 was just THE BEST year! I’m still very much in love with the music from my high school days, when I was at the peak of my nerdiness. So that’s ‘86 to ‘88… That’s still all I listen to, pretty much.”

Once started on the theme of classic hip-hop Buck rattles off a long list of favourites – highlighting the Ultramagnetic MCs, MC Sham, Cash Money and Marvelous’ Ugly People Be Quiet and stressing that his favourite Public Enemy album is “the first one [1987’s Yo! Bum Rush the Show ]… though that’s probably a little controversial”.

Buck links his “nerdy” love of hip-hop to the original role of the MC in hip-hop; back in the in the days when the wordsmith MCs rhymed clever and precise over the beats, but the heroes of hip-hop were the breakers or DJs. While the “I have now recognized that I probably misinterpreted hip hop. I started to realize this when I began to notice that my favourite songs weren’t anyone else’s favourite songs. But what the hell? I was living in rural Nova Scotia! It was bound to happen. It means that my own version of hip hop comes out sounding cock-eyed to most people. But I don’t care. I am the Tits McGee of rap!”

“I always was and still am more interested in the music than the fashion, or the look, or the lifestyle, or whatever you want to call it. I was never one to “ape”, if you know what I mean. Back in high school I just wore the clothes by mother bought me for Christmas I was hopeless. I never had a girlfriend. I got my first girlfriend when I was 20 years old for christ’s sake! So while everyone else was trying to figure out how to be tough, I was figuring out how to make beats and learning scratch patterns.”

Though the sounds of the late 80s shaped Buck’s love of hip-hop he finds traces of the sound in unexpected places: “I think I have a weird ear for hip-hop. I hear hip-hop in places that other people don’t. I’m not sure why. I think it may have something to do with becoming a beat maker during the sample era. I trained my ear to listen for sounds that would work well in hip hop beats, I suppose. So now, an album like Is This Desire? by PJ Harvey sounds like hip-hop to me. A lot of the Flaming Lips stuff sounds like hip-hop to me. I hear hip-hop in Iggy Pop’s New Values album. Joy Division appeals to the hardcore hip-hop head in me in a very strong way.”

While the fellow Canadian Drake finds himself surrounded by far too many people that he didn’t know last year as he rockets to fame, Buck lets contemporary hip-hop pass him by. “I don’t listen to much new hip hop music at all,” he admits, “It just doesn’t grab me, which is depressing sometimes. I feel old.” Despite declaring Joanna Newsom is “more punk than any quote-unquote punk band out there today. I read Joanna Newsom as the biggest “fuck you” to the world ever.” Despite his admiration, Buck says that hasn’t heard Right On, the track Newsom appears on the new Roots record, confessing that “I haven’t heard the new Roots album. The last Roots album I heard was their first one.”

Buck recently formed his own collaboration with an unexpected female accomplice; Belgian producer Joëlle Phuong Minh for the *Bike for Three! project and though the pair still haven’t met in person they released an album in 2009. Buck is on record claiming that the only way for a musician to make a living is through constant touring. So why did he form a project that’s defined by a lack of face to face interaction and impossible to tour? “I guess another way to put it would be to say that Bike For Three! is a project that can’t possibly make any money! Joëlle and I still haven’t met. And it’s still very important to both of us that we never do. Since the More Heart Than Brains album, we’ve recorded three new songs. And we’re doing something together for her own album right now. There will be another Bike For Three! album someday. Maybe in 2011.”

Another of Buck’s many projects is the 100 Story Building project with D-Sisive which aims to source funny, strange, tragic, inspiring, epic stories from fans and turn them into songs for instant immortalization, though Buck admits that “The response to the idea has been a little disappointing. But the project is still happening. I’m hoping to get a song or two out there shortly. Hopefully when people see that it’s a real thing, we’ll get a nice second wave of response.”

Perhaps he’ll find a better response on tour in Australia, where thanks to regular airplay on triple j and community radio Buck has built a strong following and had several minor hits including the recent tune Paper Airplane. On his website Buck mentions that “I’ve never had a hit before, but when I finished [the new track] Final Approach I thought to myself ‘this kinda sounds like a hit’”.

From an outsiders perspective it may seem as though Wicked and Weird, Kennedy Killed the Hat and Paper Airplane were at least cult hits, so why does Final Approach feel like a ‘hit’ breakthrough? “I guess what I really meant by that,” Buck explains, “is that it sounds more positive than anything I’ve ever done before. Wicked and Weird was sorta successful (by my own low standards) and Kennedy was kinda dance-y, I guess. But both songs still have an element of darkness to them. It’s always been a hard thing for me to resist. So when Final Approach was finished and I gave it a listen, I was amazed at how… positive it sounded! It’s downright optimistic! And I guess I associate “happy-sounding” with “accessible”... I’m not sure I believe it could be a hit anymore. I don’t think I have any idea what it takes to make a hit.”

Buck makes a daily note on Twitter of his heros birthdays and finds inspiration in the unusual coincidences and links that appear – other than a shared birthday what could possibly tie John Huston, Neil Armstrong and Adam Yauch together? Intriguingly John Farnham’s birthday recently earned a mention on Buck’s roll call of inspirational birthdays – a fact that simply can’t escape questioning from Australian fans.

Buck explains that he was unaware of the significance of Farnham in Australia and only knew of the single You’re the Voice until an Australian tour introduced into the world of Farnham fandom. After Buck and his wife shocked an Australian tour manager by singing along to You’re the Voice they soon found themselves headed home to Canada with a two CD compilation of Farnham hits provided by the manager’s mother – a devout fan. Though despite his Farnham education, for Buck it’s still all about You’re the Voice – a song which became part of his set list for over a year, performed as an audience baffling mimed cover.

While the Farnham cover seems to have been retired, Buck still promises plenty of surprises for Australian punters – “Big plans! First of all, I will have the super-sexy and insanely talented Valery Gore with me. She’ll be backing me up and making me look good… Plus, Valery and I have been cooking up some fun ideas to make the show more of a SHOW. Also, it’s my policy to jump off the stage after each show (not on top of people) and talk to everyone who wants to talk. We can chat, take pictures, hug, whatever. Most musician-types don’t do that, but they’re all wimps and jerks. I want to hang out.”

Hang out with Buck 65:
Thursday 16 September – Corner Hotel, Melbourne
Friday 17 September – Factory Threatre, Sydney
Saturday 18 September – The Spiegeltent, Brisbane Festival
Sunday 19 September – The Spiegeltent, Brisbane Festival