The talent at Torch Tuesday may be the Springfield music scene’s best-kept secret

MUSIC | Scott Faingold

[SOUND EFFECTS: needle drops onto vinyl; surface static; reporter clears throat]

I’ll never forget the day I stumbled onto Springfield’s underground hip-hop scene. It all started with Raekwon the Chef. Or perhaps it was Fast Orange.

I found myself at Bar None one evening in the spring of this year watching local hybrid punk-metal cover band Fast Orange. While standing among the typically sparse crowd at Bar None, my eye was caught by a postcardsized flyer announcing that Raekwon the Chef would be performing at the tiny downtown watering hole on that following Tuesday. Incredulous, I took a closer look. The distinctive Wu-Tang shield logo was indeed featured prominently in the flyer’s design. This did not seem possible. In fact, it was completely insane. Nonetheless, it turned out to be true.

For those unfamiliar with Raekwon, suffice to say that in the world of rap and hip-hop, the man is an internationally respected superstar. He first came to prominence in 1993 as a member of the massively popular and influential Wu-Tang Clan, a crew that also introduced the world to such genre luminaries as Ghostface Killah, Method Man and the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard. In 1995, Raekwon solidified his reputation with the release of his solo debut, Only Built for Cuban Linx, widely considered one of the greatest hip-hop records of all time. Both as a solo artist and as a member of the Wu-Tang, Raekwon has spent most of the last two decades releasing and performing music all over the world, frequently in front of sold-out stadium crowds.

Leading to the inevitable question: Why the hell would Raekwon be playing at Bar None? And why hadn’t I heard about it until now? According to the flyer, the show was only three days away. I consider myself fairly well connected, but up to this point, no word had reached me via the local press, the Internet or word-of mouth.

In fact, it is likely that if I hadn’t gone to see Fast Orange that night, I may never have learned of the Raekwon show at all.

More importantly, had that been the case, I might never have stumbled onto the fantastic mother lode of regional hip-hop talent which I soon learned has been performing every week of the year at Bar None under the banner “Torch Tuesday.” Which in turn would mean the article you’re reading right now might never have been written.

Thanks, Fast Orange!

[SOUND EFFECTS: record begins to skip, causing reporter’s voice to repeat, “-ast Orange, -ast Orange, -ast Orange”; needle scratches across vinyl; jazzy break-beat music, under]

Raekwon’s brief, wee-hours set at Bar None (which turned out to have been a last-minute booking via Wiseguyz Productions to fill a gap in Raekwon’s schedule between Chicago and St. Louis club dates) was an eye-opening experience – but not so much because of the star’s performance. Sure, the roly-poly rap legend’s charisma was intact and he did all of the solo and Wu-Tang hits, as expected, but the main thing that was notable about his appearance remained the fact that it even happened in Springfield in the first place. What really made the night special was the parade of young local and regional hip-hop artists that preceded him onstage, all of them hungry to express themselves and clearly thrilled to be performing. It didn’t seem to matter that the audience, even counting Rakewon’s entourage, was no larger than the scant crowd Fast Orange had drawn the previous weekend. This was still an event. This was Torch Tuesday, and Raekwon’s presence, though thrilling, was largely incidental.

Torch Tuesday is the proud creation of Howard “Torch” Tomas (aka H. T. Spitfire), a focused and energetic local promoter, musician and entrepreneur whose lifelong love of hiphop music and culture seems to inform every aspect of his life. The weekly Torch Tuesday event is part open mic, part talent showcase, and 100 percent a way of life for Torch and his cast of regulars.