Buckethead: Pike 126 - Tourist

Artist: Buckethead
Album: Pike 126 - Tourist
Release date: April 10, 2015
Label: Independent (Bandcamp release)
Genre: look, it's Buckethead, he'll do whatever he wants. In this case, it's kind of alternative rock.









WHAT THIS IS ABOUT
Buckethead is the guy with a bucket on his head. He also happen to be one of the best, most innovative rock guitarist of his generation. You might remember him from the time Guns'n'Roses tried to evolve. I remember him for Pandemoniumfromamerica, one of the best albums you've never heard, an experimental take on spoken word in collaboration with Viggo Mortensen. Now, good ol' Bucky here never rests. The number right there is not an inside joke, this is the 126th album in the Pike series, which started in 2011. Tourist is guitar experimentation - you're either fascinated by it or not, I guess.

WHAT IT DOES RIGHT
The only song you can stream on Bandcamp without buying the full album (which you should) is the centerpiece of this piece of work. Glow Worm is the kind of musical journey you can expect from Buckethead, and I have to say that it's both deep and pleasant - you can kinda leave it in the background and it'll do good things to your mind, or you can dive into it and find the meaning behind every note. This double layer approach has alway been Buckethead's main strength, so it's not surprising to see it here. I found Ticket to Extinguish to be the album's other high point, but it's a pretty cohesive work anyway, enjoyable as a whole. It's a lossless release, so it sounds great.

WHAT IT DOES WRONG
You have to be a fan. I hate when people say, "it's an acquired taste", but it's true that you might not appreciate Buckethead if you're not already into him. I don't think he cares, but I do. So do yourself a favour and check some of his stuff online, listen to the 14-minutes song from this one and choose.

VERDICT
Buy it. At $8.99 it's a bit pricey, so you might be tempted to wait until it pops up on other streaming services, but it's not guaranteed to happen and you'd risk losing this chance just because you're a cheap bastard. Don't be a cheap bastard. Then again, if you're looking to enter the world of Buckethead, keep in mind that this is a fine album, but not his most memorable effort.