Buck 65, Skratch Bastid & Cadence Weapon / April 13, 2008 / The Playhouse / Fredericton, NB

Skratch Bastid

Skratch Bastid is one of the best djs that I’ve ever seen in my entire life. His playlist included personalized remixes of "Paper Planes" (M.I.A), "She Talks To Angels" (The Black Crowes), "Brass Monkey" (The Beatie Boys), "Sex Machine Pt 1" (James Brown) and the sickest version of "Let’s Stay Together" by Al Green that I’ve ever heard. Needless to say, I lost my shit a lot during his set.

Cadence Weapon

You know an artist is going to have a good set when they begin the night by randomly bringing up ReBoot. I didn’t feel so old suddenly when Rollie (the rapper behind the project) brought up the old Canadian CGI-animated tv show. Cadence Weapon’s set was insane. He took full use of the Playhouse’s stage by striding back and forth across it and admitted that the gigantic stage reminded him of when he "was a thespian." He also ran up and down the aisles and jumped up and down on the venue seats while performing. His hardwork was recognized by one audience member who presented him with a beer by the second or third song of the act.

To see the rest of Cadence Weapon’s set, click here.

Buck 65

The last time I had seen Nova Scotia native, Buck 65 was in ‘01 when he opened up for The Tragically Hip and Our Lady Peace on Canada Day. Last night’s performance was very much different, but not in a bad way. Both performances were incredible, but Buck 65 has turned more towards his love of blues and country but adds a flavour of hip hop. The end result is what Johnny Cash would sound like if he had decided to make hip hop instead of country. As it turns out, Buck 65 was recently invited by the Cash family to contribute to an album of Johnny Cash covered by other artists, so be on the lookout for that.

To see the rest of the photos from Buck 65 and Skratch Bastid’s set, click here.