Buck 65

On this compilation-style LP, Canadian emcee Buck 65 plucks assorted jams from his lengthy discography; delivering husky storytelling raps set to plenty of acoustic guitars and understated beats. Sounding like a fusion of Sage Francis, Everlast and Tom Waits, this is non-traditional hip-hop you will either love or hate.

Canadian rapper Buck 65 has been making winningly off-kilter hip-hop for a decade, setting
himself apart from the rest of underground hip-hop with a gruff, witty delivery that calls to
mind a countrified Tom Waits. On this disc of previously released material, the Nova Scotia
native's on-the-beat flow can feel overly mechanical. But his palette of skittering drums,
spooky guitars and subsonic bass lines is employed to impressively varied effect,... More >

Since four standout tracks come from one of my favorite albums of the millennium, the Canada-only Talkin' Honky Blues, I have my doubts about the best-of route taken by Richard Terfry's long-delayed U.S.-major debut. Only it's not a best-of. Listening back to such worthy alt-rap cult items as Square, Vertex, and Man Overboard, I was amazed at how willowy he once sounded--a mere stripling, with a voice macho chauvinists could call nerdy even if he was a hell of a shortstop. Everything here projects his new gruff 'n' gravelly persona, including a remake of the best song in hip-hop history about a big dick (which utilizes a John Fahey-type sample rather than the electronics he has a knack for). Three are from two 2004 Canada-only EPs; another, the striking if overwrought "Cries a Girl," is now a live staple. The collection doesn't cohere the way it should, and I still say seek out Talkin' Honky Blues. But wherever you start, he's a major rhymer, performer, storyteller, humanist visionary, and student of the DJ arts. (Grade - A-)