Buckethead
- Thread starter CriedWhenBrucieLeft
- Start date
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
#60 Footsteps
It can be argued that this type of music doesn't have variation either. The chord scheme is almost the same in the whole pike. However ....
Buckethead's brilliant feel for melody and his talent for improvisation combine best in this style. This is moody, but uplifting and catchy music. Some of the patterns are totally in my street. Take this. Or this. And this! Simple, but so directly grabbing. Footsteps is a good title. The music sounds like fine company for a stroll.
It can be argued that this type of music doesn't have variation either. The chord scheme is almost the same in the whole pike. However ....
Buckethead's brilliant feel for melody and his talent for improvisation combine best in this style. This is moody, but uplifting and catchy music. Some of the patterns are totally in my street. Take this. Or this. And this! Simple, but so directly grabbing. Footsteps is a good title. The music sounds like fine company for a stroll.
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
I'm not particularly fond of some of these albums either...
Looking forward a little more to your review of this one though!
Last edited:
Yea I've noticed that too. The drums are actually pretty good for being programmed usually. I don't think it's a distraction at all. They usually take enough of a backseat that the guitar is the focus. But I also focus on guitar more naturally, so there's that.
Yea it's not that different, but something about it just doesn't connect with me. I find most of it kinda generic Buckethead I guess.
Pike 18 - More mellow Buckethead. This one is more acoustic driven than others like it. Buckethead's music, whether soft or heavy, tends to be driven by electric guitars. On this album there is hardly (if any) electric. So it's a nice contrast. Also less ambient than Pike 13 and less moody than Pike 15. Another example of Buckethead's range.
Pike 19 - Buckethead had a brief electronic period toward the beginning of his career, I gave these albums mostly negative reviews. The electronics have slowly worked their way back into his music with the Pike series and here is an example of an album where it works. My main criticism of his electronic albums was the lack of variation. This isn't the case here. This album is very dynamic. There are some really brutal moments followed by moments with acoustic guitar. Also some really creepy sound effects. Also kinda similar to the Balloon Cement album in that it's one long piece broken up into tiny parts. Similarly great flow.
Pike 20 - Back to (mostly) pure heaviness on this album. It's OK but I found most of the songs to be a little too same-y. Super heavy riff followed by a groovy downtuned riff. Lots of wah. Meh. Kind of plods.
Pike 21 - Another electronically driven album. I really like the electronic sounds he's using on these albums. Much more interesting than the stuff he was using earlier on in his career. There are even some dubstep like sounds here. My only complaint is that it sometimes overwhelms the guitar playing, but I think they complement each other for the most part.
Pike 22 - More of the same stuff that was on the previous Pike. Still enjoyable stuff. Some cool sounds and excellent riffing.
Pike 23 - This one was awesome. Lives up to its name and cover. Very space-y sounding, especially in the guitar tone. Kind of reminds me of Arjen Lucassen's Space Metal albums. Some really atmospheric stuff here.
Pike 24 - The electronics are mostly gone at this point. So many great grooves and riffs on this album.
Pike 25 - Similar sort of heavy groovy music as found on the previous Pike. That sort of thing is always welcome though. Some more dynamics here too.
Pike 26 - This is one I've actually heard before. Well the title track at least. Great piece with a devastating main riff and some great shredding. Despite the near 20 minute length, I was engaged for the entire tune. Great playing throughout. Also the rest of the album isn't too shabby either. The songs are pretty short, but he leaves more room for development than on Pike 17.
Pike 27 - I actually didn't realize how many great albums in a row there were until now. But the great thing about these Pikes is that he switches it up a lot. After some pretty heavy albums, this one goes back to a more stripped back groovy album with bluesy soloing. There's not much to this one, but it's a great listen nonetheless.
Pike 28 - Another dynamic offering from Buckethead. Some really heavy tunes start this off, but then there are more laid back groovy ones. I actually really liked the minimalist Cactus Spines. Not a lot going on, but it had a chilling atmosphere.
Pike 29 - Here the electronics make their return. One of Buckethead's more "rambly" albums. It's mostly just him shredding, but I still love listening to him shred.
Pike 30 - One of the more "traditional" Pikes. Mostly riff driven standard heavy stuff. It's nothing special but still worth hearing.
Pike 31 - Another acoustic album, this time with longer pieces. This one is kind of like Pike 18, but there are more vamp sections. Lots of nice buildups in these songs too.
Needless to say, I think Buckethead is in top form during this period.
Pike 19 - Buckethead had a brief electronic period toward the beginning of his career, I gave these albums mostly negative reviews. The electronics have slowly worked their way back into his music with the Pike series and here is an example of an album where it works. My main criticism of his electronic albums was the lack of variation. This isn't the case here. This album is very dynamic. There are some really brutal moments followed by moments with acoustic guitar. Also some really creepy sound effects. Also kinda similar to the Balloon Cement album in that it's one long piece broken up into tiny parts. Similarly great flow.
Pike 20 - Back to (mostly) pure heaviness on this album. It's OK but I found most of the songs to be a little too same-y. Super heavy riff followed by a groovy downtuned riff. Lots of wah. Meh. Kind of plods.
Pike 21 - Another electronically driven album. I really like the electronic sounds he's using on these albums. Much more interesting than the stuff he was using earlier on in his career. There are even some dubstep like sounds here. My only complaint is that it sometimes overwhelms the guitar playing, but I think they complement each other for the most part.
Pike 22 - More of the same stuff that was on the previous Pike. Still enjoyable stuff. Some cool sounds and excellent riffing.
Pike 23 - This one was awesome. Lives up to its name and cover. Very space-y sounding, especially in the guitar tone. Kind of reminds me of Arjen Lucassen's Space Metal albums. Some really atmospheric stuff here.
Pike 24 - The electronics are mostly gone at this point. So many great grooves and riffs on this album.
Pike 25 - Similar sort of heavy groovy music as found on the previous Pike. That sort of thing is always welcome though. Some more dynamics here too.
Pike 26 - This is one I've actually heard before. Well the title track at least. Great piece with a devastating main riff and some great shredding. Despite the near 20 minute length, I was engaged for the entire tune. Great playing throughout. Also the rest of the album isn't too shabby either. The songs are pretty short, but he leaves more room for development than on Pike 17.
Pike 27 - I actually didn't realize how many great albums in a row there were until now. But the great thing about these Pikes is that he switches it up a lot. After some pretty heavy albums, this one goes back to a more stripped back groovy album with bluesy soloing. There's not much to this one, but it's a great listen nonetheless.
Pike 28 - Another dynamic offering from Buckethead. Some really heavy tunes start this off, but then there are more laid back groovy ones. I actually really liked the minimalist Cactus Spines. Not a lot going on, but it had a chilling atmosphere.
Pike 29 - Here the electronics make their return. One of Buckethead's more "rambly" albums. It's mostly just him shredding, but I still love listening to him shred.
Pike 30 - One of the more "traditional" Pikes. Mostly riff driven standard heavy stuff. It's nothing special but still worth hearing.
Pike 31 - Another acoustic album, this time with longer pieces. This one is kind of like Pike 18, but there are more vamp sections. Lots of nice buildups in these songs too.
Needless to say, I think Buckethead is in top form during this period.
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
Mosh, your reviewing speed is to be admired. That was abouT seven hours of Buckethead.
Hope you don't mind me saying that I miss the pike titles in these reviews. The number of pikes is so huge already. I know I can look at wikipedia or wherever to translate but I hoped to learn the stuff more by heart by reading all this. Doesn't happen. I have no clue what this is all about (trouble with connecting the music to the pike numbers).
Hope you don't mind me saying that I miss the pike titles in these reviews. The number of pikes is so huge already. I know I can look at wikipedia or wherever to translate but I hoped to learn the stuff more by heart by reading all this. Doesn't happen. I have no clue what this is all about (trouble with connecting the music to the pike numbers).
Last edited:
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
That's a short reaction.
Last edited:
I can include these in the next review.
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
Indeed! We're chugging along at a great rate of knots here. Anything going into a playlist here, Mosh?
Aye, kind of agree. I'm much more familiar with the Pike name to be honest, so I had to keep checking what Pike you were referring to, too. Plus, these weren't released in this order, so some of these albums, relative to the others, are actually quite new to me. Or at least newer...
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
I threw this one in there because undoubtedly he put a lot of work into producing this one; sonically it's very professionally finished. It also all seems to blend together very effectively. It's even, to my mind, quite commercial sounding. I think people would be quite surprised a how totally un-Rock/Metal Buckethead can really be. At first listen I thought what the fuck is this? But I've grown to really like it. Second half drags a little, perhaps because it's basically all the same. Still, Factory Q, R, S, T, and X, Y are all 4-star tracks for me personally. Nothing outstanding, but enjoy listening to most of this album now.
Overall I feel this is pretty solid. It's not my favourite Buckethead feel, but again I don't hear a lack of quality here. All 4-star tracks for me, although nothing outstanding.
Another Pike I found hard to love. I used to positively dislike the whole thing, but more recently I've began to like bits of it. To be honest, apart from Electric Umbrella (the middle track) I find the whole Pike pretty solid. Nothing outstandingly interesting though.
Good review. It's a difficult ask to go to 30-minute tracks, particularly if you're only lukewarm in your appreciation for them, and keep listening to them; but this rises a little higher than that. Not outstanding, but it's a nice listen.
Note that this is literally the only highlights I put to you from this (~52 > 63) range. The others aren't without merit, but they're even more uneven. Slim pickings.
Last edited:
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
Yeh, that's fine. We can work through it in sections. I have to admit, the pre-Halloween run is dire i.e. in the run up to it. 2015 really was just too much; quality dipped quite a bit. Still, I was making a playlist & there is a lot still to like. Frustrating it's buried amongst so much so-so material though...
Next up for Foro:
Next up for Foro:
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
#64 Aquarium (will write something about this later)
#65 Hold Me Forever (see earlier in this thread: already in possession. I'm very impressed by the first half, because of the grabbing riffs and melodies; solo in second half felt too long)
#66 Leave the Light On
I don't know why I ignored to buy this one last time. Maybe the fact that it felt samish as the previous pike. "Not again a long solo...!" But when I played this yesterday I realized the title track's solo is awesome. I can't explain it but here it works better for me. Perhaps it's the build up. Perhaps some melodies. This one I find bloody great. Perhaps Buckethead is less long in shredding mode than on Hold. Anyway I'm blown away by this man. Hat off. Hospitality is a nice calm follow up song. Bellman continues in Foro's fav Buckethead style mode. Rock on! \m/ The last one is odd, and fits less well to my taste. Still, it's only five minutes and it hardly drags down the total quality. Great album, I'm glad I to have (re!)-discovered this. Cheers.
#65 Hold Me Forever (see earlier in this thread: already in possession. I'm very impressed by the first half, because of the grabbing riffs and melodies; solo in second half felt too long)
#66 Leave the Light On
I don't know why I ignored to buy this one last time. Maybe the fact that it felt samish as the previous pike. "Not again a long solo...!" But when I played this yesterday I realized the title track's solo is awesome. I can't explain it but here it works better for me. Perhaps it's the build up. Perhaps some melodies. This one I find bloody great. Perhaps Buckethead is less long in shredding mode than on Hold. Anyway I'm blown away by this man. Hat off. Hospitality is a nice calm follow up song. Bellman continues in Foro's fav Buckethead style mode. Rock on! \m/ The last one is odd, and fits less well to my taste. Still, it's only five minutes and it hardly drags down the total quality. Great album, I'm glad I to have (re!)-discovered this. Cheers.
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
Just remember you'll probably be able to pick most of these (should you identify others you really like too) in the next $2 Pikes sale.
Trumpism...
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
View attachment 5621
Yes I did! But at least as much did I like the last four minutes from the album (so from Hopper Feeding Mash). What a riff feast and gorgeous melodies. The first track has awesome riffing. Heavy shit, in a good way. The second song has some moments that feel too "busy" for me (the intensity doesn't match well with the rest of the song), but the album really gets going from track three. I am not that fond of this drum sound, but the music on top is too good to ignore. All in all, this pike needs to be added to the wishlist!
Looking forward to it!
Last edited:
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
#67 Abandoned Slaughterhouse
Intense album with mechanical riffs and rather different, cold production. The music has not enough variation and lacks melody or anything else spectacular to make up for downsides. It did not help that I was disturbed by the shitty noise Buckethead blatantly farts over the music. Too much really. *throws pike for second time into virtual dustbin*
By the way: a pike with an album title on the cover? (As if that was a mistake, someone forgot to remove it)
@CriedWhenBrucieLeft @Mosh check this:
http://bucketheadopedia.com/
Intense album with mechanical riffs and rather different, cold production. The music has not enough variation and lacks melody or anything else spectacular to make up for downsides. It did not help that I was disturbed by the shitty noise Buckethead blatantly farts over the music. Too much really. *throws pike for second time into virtual dustbin*
By the way: a pike with an album title on the cover? (As if that was a mistake, someone forgot to remove it)
@CriedWhenBrucieLeft @Mosh check this:
http://bucketheadopedia.com/
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
#69 Assignment 033-03
#70 Snow SLug
It's hard to listen to thirty minutes of weak three note riffs.
@CriedWhenBrucieLeft, do you really appreciate what's happening on this crap pike? Why on earth?
#70 Snow SLug
It's hard to listen to thirty minutes of weak three note riffs.
Last edited:
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
Brutal. Your review that is.