Buckethead

I'd like to be done by summer. Once I get to the Pikes I'll start listening to and from school so I'll get through these faster.
 
Slaughterhouse on the Prairie
Fun album cover, fun title, references to basketball players, this sounds like it will be Buckethead in top form.

Favorite Songs
Lebron - Love the majestic main theme here. Great way to start things off. The killswitch riff is cool too.
Lebron's Hammer - This is a nice complement to the previous song. Starts off more groovy before getting thrashy. The speedy riffs remind me of a cross between Megadeth and Judas Priest. Love the sudden changes in timing. Very seamless.
Blood Bayou
Iceman - Awesome main riff on this song.
Don't Use Roosts...
Premonition
Crouching Slump - Loved the jazz solo in this. Totally unexpected and awesome.
Goat Host
The Stretching Room - This one started off iffy but won me over with the bluesy licks over heavy double bass drums in the second half.
Rack Maintenance 2

The Verdict
Well I didn't realize that I put almost every song on my favorites list. There really wasn't anything to dislike here and almost every track had at least one moment that grabbed my attention, even though I was listening to this more as background music. He's on fire on this album. Great playing, great riffs. I do really enjoy these albums where it's just him and a drummer jamming. I know a lot of the pikes are like that and I look forward to it.
Initially wasn't going to rate it because I wasn't listening to it that attentively, but it still kept my attention anyway. That's pretty impressive and doesn't happen often. Therefore, I give this a

9/10
 
Just one point: I don't think there are any real drummers involved in any of these recently reviewed albums; if that's what your "just him and a drummer jamming" comment implied. This is all Dan Monti's programming as far as I'm aware.
 
Ah OK, misread the credits. Pretty good drum programming, I thought they were real.
 
A Real Diamond In the Rough
Supposedly a mellower offering in the vein of Electric Sea and Colma, sounds good to me!

Favorite Songs
Broken Mirror - This has a nice build to it. It is calm but not without some heavy moments. Great soloing.
Big D's Touch
Separate Sky - Fantastic song. This is the perfect blend of heaviness and calmness that wasn't present on albums like Colma. Adds a new dimension to the music with the dynamics.
Dawn Appears
Squid Ink
Formless Present - Very minimalist and eerie. The baritone guitars are a nice touch (for the album in general, but this song specifically).
The Return of Captain EO - What makes this track so effective is how unexpected it is. The previous song is so hypnotic, I started to space out during it and then this heavy riff came out of nowhere. It was great. Yet this song fits perfectly in this album, despite the calmness of most of the rest album. As the last track, it feels like everything was building up to this.

The Verdict
I can't believe I've never heard of this album before. I always hear about Colma and Electric Tears for Buckethead's softer side, but never this album. But it was easily the best of his softer albums. It was more dynamic, with some heavy moments thrown in but they never dominate. This album was moody, atmospheric, and full of great guitar playing. It serves as a nice complement to the previous album, which was heavier overall and showed Buckethead's more manic side. This album was much more restrained, even in its heavier moments.

9/10
 
Forensic Follies
From wiki
The album uses a technique known as xenochrony which consist of using parts of older songs and taking them to create another new song.
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This has me interested. Xenochrony is a technique invented by Frank Zappa, he eventually got to the point where he was never recording guitar solos in the studio because he was using solos from his live recordings (he recorded every show). Really interesting technique and I wish more artists used it. I'm sure this album is a lot of fun for the hardcore fans who can instantly recognize the older songs being used. I'm not that familiar with his music having listened to most albums only once, so I probably won't recognize anything.

Favorite Songs
Forensic Follies
A Cycle Light Ray Cannons
Splinter In a Slunk's Eye - I love the glitchy sounds in these songs. Really interesting rhythmic stuff happening. Nice build in intensity during this song too.
Whirlwind - He was successful in creating something that sounds like a whirlwind.
Plunger

The Verdict
I was impressed with this album. The more experimental Buckethead albums have been inconsistent so far, this one is the most successful imo. The glitchy editing worked really well here. It created some interesting grooves. The only problem is that it sometimes does get repetitive. As usual, he takes a single sound and messes with it, rather than doing something more varied. It works if you like the sound though and in this case I liked it a lot. It was noisy and out there, but also catchy and even danceable.

8/10
 
A Real Diamond in the Rough is a lovely, lovely album; glad you've discovered it. I agree with you analysis; it's a great mix of heavy & mellow, with nice moody atmosphere, and excellent tone. Quite surprised you liked Forensic Follies so much. Needle in a Slunk Stack (which is up next) is basically exactly the same; they were released not that far apart. In fact, all of these albums (Slaughterhouse on the Prairie through to Needle in a Slunk Stack) were released in 2009. All 8's & 9's from Mosh so far!

Nearly 10% through the discography! Only 251 solo releases (at present) to go!
 
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Forensic Follies reminded me of Kaleidoscalp. Similar experimentation and glitchy electronic sounds. Follies is more interesting overall and closer to what I wanted Kaleidoscalp to be.

Another album in that vein sounds good, but hopefully it's trying something new.
 
Mosh said:
Forensic Follies reminded me of Kaleidoscalp. Similar experimentation and glitchy electronic sounds. Follies is more interesting overall and closer to what I wanted Kaleidoscalp to be.
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Really? That's quite surprising. I prefer Kaleidoscalp personally; far heavier, and more conventional from a guitar playing perspective. To me, the construction feels more thought out too. FF is decent, but for me there is nothing that truly stands out as particularly memorable on the album. I like the idea behind the construction though.
Mosh said:
Another album in that vein sounds good, but hopefully it's trying something new.
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The next album (Needle) has new/original drum tracks as opposed to them being recycled (as on FF). That aside, it's still tracks made from previous work using Xenochrony.

The Pikes draw nearer. Can we take a breather to discuss your general/overall thoughts in regard to Buckethead's conventional/standard pre-Pikes albums at this point? Your only four albums away from this point.
 
I like both, but I thought Kaleidoscalp had more 'noodle-y' moments that didn't go anywhere for me. I thought FF was more coherent and had more memorable moments.

CriedWhenBrucieLeft said:
The Pikes draw nearer. Can we take a breather to discuss your general/overall thoughts in regard to Buckethead's conventional/standard pre-Pikes albums at this point? Your only four albums away from this point.
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Yes, I was planning on doing that anyway. I will listen to one or two albums today, then the remaining ones on Tuesday and/or Friday.
 
Needle In a Slunk Stack
Mosh said:
Another album in that vein sounds good, but hopefully it's trying something new.
Click to expand...
CriedWhenBrucieLeft said:
The next album (Needle) has new/original drum tracks as opposed to them being recycled (as on FF). That aside, it's still tracks made from previous work using Xenochrony.
Click to expand...

Favorite Songs
Needle In a Slunk Stack - So this is kind of different. Similar noises but groovier than what was on the previous album. The noise gets really out there for the second half too.
Carcass Cable
Furnace
Astral Traveller

The Verdict
Wasn't able to devote as much attention to this, but it was enjoyable. Few songs jumped out at me, but that was true for Forensic Follies too. It definitely felt similar, although making new drum parts for the songs helped give it an added layer of depth. There were more grooves that made the music easier to latch on to. Overall, I prefer Follies but this was a good companion album. Another pair of Buckethead albums where you could probably take the best material from each and make one disc.
 
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