Buckethead\'s current material review/rant

[badgerbot]

Me plead guilty to being hopelessly devoted Buckethead fan and listening to new CDs full-time since Friday.  Going back to my burrow now to turn it up and not coming back out.

[kevindanielcahill]

I believe that music is something that people can argue about as much as religion (in some cases) there is no right and wrong, good and bad. Just difference in opinion, I unfortunetly sometimes share the opinion of some of you guys but at the end of the day.
We are all here for the same reason and regardless of if you think Big B is slipping, we all still buy his records because we know he can connect with us.
He hasnt fell of his game, hes just doing what he does best, being himself and pushing the boundaries. Who knows? if he didnt experiment in the past so much, we might not have had the great records like, Inbred or Peppers or Colma etc??

I think the best release of the year has been Shaddows, hands down!

Lookin\' forward to a new Dragons record, I hear Travis said its in the making at some point.

Anyway, peace...

[Bucketdog]

^^^^ agreed 100%, well said.

[TheNose]

My opinion on both sides of this argument has been already voiced by other bots--I respect Buckethead for releasing anything this year but I don\'t like the filler on the Regards set and wish a lot of it had been just left on the cutting room floor.  Spinal Clock I actually really like but as they say, different strokes for different folks.  SBTS and Brain as Hamenoodles aren\'t anything mind-blowing but both have some seriously memorable parts.

Anyway, it\'s interesting to see all this drama unfold--
If Bucket is trying to test (and or alienate) his already extremely open-minded and diverse fanbase with the regards set, I can safely say that by the rants I am seeing, he is succeeding.  If with this regards set, he is trying to show us the creative process in making an album and showing us how they experiment before something truly gels, then it\'s interesting, but do those tracks really need to be as long as they are?

As other bots have stated before--Buckethead can release what he wants and it\'s our choice to buy it or not. However, as critical and intelligent people we also have a right to voice our opinions and discuss the good and bad points of his releases.  Right? Or Do we just stay not say anything--  feeling discontent but afraid to speak up/pressured to stay silent?  

I have a hard time believing that this is what Buckethead wanted all along--this disappointment and discord among the bots, but maybe (probably), as in most things Bucket does, there\'s a method to this madness.

Anyway,
Here\'s a question for all the bots, discontent or otherwise:  best song of the year so far?

My vote is for Skeleton Dance.

[Jowaxe]

Here\'s the nice thing.

There are still more Buckethead albums that I LOVE than any other artist in my collection. If he doesn\'t release something that I barf over (that\'s good), then its cool...i have plenty to listen to.

I won\'t say "if you don\'t like it, don\'t buy it"....cuz you don\'t know if you like it or not unless you buy it. Right?

Also...just read this... "If Buckethead is trying to test..."

Come on...what independant artist would ever put out what their fans would think is garbage to weed out "not true fans" and lose all that income? That just seems like a silly idea to me...

[Bucketfel]

well i think there is a lot of true in this tread. I cant help to give my opinion to the albums ive downloaded to the albums that ive bought, but in this case the opinions change when circumstances change. To better explain, i defend FF, SC, and NIASS because i liked them, but that it cuz i didnt bought them beforehand, and i am fully aware of what they contain, but for people who bought it on the spot i can understand your position of being disapointed for spending on an album and at the end it wasnt quite your taste. Its logic and normal to feel that way, maybe thats the main reason why our opinions differ so much.

Sadly (or happly depending on the side one views the matter) when i bought SC on the spot i liked what i hear, and from time to time i contemplate the cover while hearing "Skeleton Dance".. But t could also have been that i could have been dissapointed but again its just a matter of the cirscumtances.

I also want it to be clear that i dont suport BR, just "Blue 1" and as much as i like the FF/NIASS i also think that FF is better than NIASS.

BTW, bucketdog you are a cool guy and you make an argument, but i think that when youre reading what i say you are just angry instead of seing my point of view, and failing to see that what i say over and over is that i buy them but at a really slow rate (this means i dont have money man, and you are just bashing me cuz i cant buy them at the same rate as other bots). I love your argument but plz understand me before getting the bat and trying to hit me with it
  . Love ya pal



And to answer the question from the nose:

I think the best song is "Sled Ride", just so cool to hear it

[Bucketfel]

Well FUCK YOU then

Box plz, there is no need to attack other bots. u should know that everyone is entitled to their opinion

[TheNose]

Also...just read this... "If Buckethead is trying to test..."

Come on...what independant artist would ever put out what their fans would think is garbage to weed out "not true fans" and lose all that income? That just seems like a silly idea to me...

You\'re right, it is a silly idea.  I guess what I was trying to say there didn\'t come across as I intended it to.  Since Buckethead is purposefully releasing tracks that are by most bots standards not up to snuff,  he is quite deliberately disregarding their own feelings about the content of his music.  Which doesn\'t matter, to a point, Buckethead is an artist and he\'s making art--some of the stuff Picasso made really doesn\'t jive with me either, but that\'s what artists do--weird and often blatantly abrasive things.  But there\'s a cool abrasive like IOLM or CCoH and there\'s abrasive abrasive, like some of the songs off BR.

 The truly silly thing here is Buckethead, an independent artist who depends on the loyalty of his fans for his income, must have known full well he was going to seriously disappoint and even alienate a good many of his fans with this set, and yet he did it anyway, potentially losing their respect, their loyalty, and therefore, income.  As crazy as that sounds and why he would do that, only he knows, but it seems pretty deliberate to me.

Also to Bucketfel--yeah I love \'Sled Ride\' too!  The song is so fun to listen to, and the title is perfect. I was debating between that song and skeleton dance.

[Travis]

I am very tolerant on this board. You can say anything about my music or anyone else\'s here. Give your opinions, rub my nose in it, just about anything. But I won\'t tolerate name calling or other abusive use of language. I don\'t care if you criticize  yourselfs or me, just take care how you do it.

Also, you do know, I know who most of you are don\'t you? I wonder sometimes.

[Boxenstien]

I sincerely apologize for that post Travis, what he said there just got to me, Bucketfel is a great guy, and just because he heard a few songs before he bought a CD doesn\'t mean he needs to get this crap.

Once again, I\'m very sorry.

[Bucketfel]

Also to Bucketfel--yeah I love \'Sled Ride\' too!  The song is so fun to listen to, and the title is perfect. I was debating between that song and skeleton dance.

I am just saying of the albums from this year that i got. Now i remember that i got Shadows Between the Sky as a farewell gift when i was leaving Chile.

But the stadout tracks of this year that ive heard are "Sled Ride", "Shadows Bewteen the Sky", "Skeleton Dance", "Four O\'Clock Dub Down", "Blue 1", and "Green 2" but i think this last one is like a runner up. Every other track named i think is at number 1. But you know, my opinion is not as relevant as those who bought the album without knowing

[Bucketfel]

I am very tolerant on this board. You can say anything about my music or anyone else\'s here. Give your opinions, rub my nose in it, just about anything. But I won\'t tolerate name calling or other abusive use of language. I don\'t care if you criticize  yourselfs or me, just take care how you do it.

Also, you do know, I know who most of you are don\'t you? I wonder sometimes.

Also travis on other subject. I was wondering because you said something about cracks on the cases and thats why you changed to slipcases right??

Well have you considered those cases that are made from paper? i think they are called digipak. It would be cool to see a release in that format.

[Bucketdog]

@boxenstein F**k me? Ok... Considering how stealing takes food away from people\'s mouths and makes their hard work (if we like the content or not) in vein. If everybody here (who actually works) did 40 hours per-week of hard work and only got paid for 30 or even 20 they would prolly say," Bloody hell, what am I doing this for? I got bills to pay and a family to feed. I quit!". It\'s very discouraging when you know some of your "fans" will just take as they please, it\'s almost like a smack in the face... I won\'t mention bucketfel again after this post. It is what it is. This is a concept you\'ll learn better, when you reach adulthood...

Big-b should be driving a "S" class Mercedes and live in a 2 million plus dollar home, I doubt he is, but he deserves to. The music business is tough and he deserves to get paid for every single tune he has ever written and that is on every single one of his fans and listeners alike computers and iPods . Even though I\'m not thrilled with the new stuff, I still acknowledge everything he has done and how hard it is to get where he is.//

[Bucketfel]

@boxenstein F**k me? Ok... Considering how stealing takes food away from people\'s mouths and makes their hard work (if we like the content or not) in vein. If everybody here (who actually works) did 40 hours per-week of hard work and only got paid for 30 or even 20 they would prolly say," Bloody hell, what am I doing this for? I got bills to pay and a family to feed. I quit!". It\'s very discouraging when you know some of your "fans" will just take as they please, it\'s almost like a smack in the face... I won\'t mention bucketfel again after this post. It is what it is. This is a concept you\'ll learn better, when you reach adulthood...

Big-b should be driving a "S" class Mercedes and live in a 2 million plus dollar home, I doubt he is, but he deserves to. The music business is tough and he deserves to get paid for every single tune he has ever written and that is on every single one of his fans and listeners alike computers and iPods . Even though I\'m not thrilled with the new stuff, I still acknowledge everything he has done and how hard it is to get where he is.//

Everything u said its true, but again everyone has their bills to pay.

Also is also true that ill understand adulthood, i mean is just a mental state that maybe i havent reached yet. Maybe im just missing that little jump to reality when i have to sayy "holy shit, i have debts to pay and no cash for Cds oh well im gonna starve to death, and get a loan from a bank which most likely ill end up regretting for and will have to end up living in the streets but hey Buckethead released BR and he needs to feed himself no matter how i feed myself". Hahaha, im just joking but again
 that only shows my level of maturity regarding more adult realities, and i know that from almost living in the streets to finally getting to afford college. I got to love Bucketdog\'s posts, always considering other peoples lifes and realities on his statements. That just further prooves that no matter how i explain it, you are still angry, and need to vent it somehow, im here for you pal, just PM all you need to say to calm you down, just if you want.

Also pal Bucketdog, i think u forgot to read the "im sorry" post from Box and the coment that Travis also added to that statement.

Also Bucketdog, i sincerily say i respect your coment, im just trying to make you see your faults as much as you bash my faults up my ass

[eggman90]

This thread just shows how passionate B\'s fans are. For me, I used to describe B to my buds (I have converted probably over 10 of them to B fans) as "this guy, with a KFC bucket on his head, and a plastic white mask." Watch them smirk or make a comment on it being a "gimmick" or something and then be completely blown away. It\'s a very satisfying feeling I know many of you are familiar with.

Today, or in the last two years (excluding some of the tunes listed above), many fans are making excuses for B\'s releases. "He\'s experimenting", or "noodling", or "jamming". He\'s resting from all the touring (we know he\'s a workaholic), he\'s recovering from an injury, spinal or otherwise, etc. This is a time where his reclusiveness is working against him. My instincts tells me something is amiss. He\'s probably reading all these posts and very frustrated.

I\'ve been part of the negative choir as well, but in thinking about this a bit it dawned on me that maybe he\'s issuing artwork, for example,  because it CAN\'T be downloaded illegally, so yes he is aware of his fanbase. And quite possibly, all the LE\'s and CD-R\'s are just ways of getting music, any music, out to his hardcore fans. I held off buying Kind Regards and Hamenoodle, and need to read more reviews to make a decision-first time for me in 4 years. So far, looks like I\'m not buying.

I mentioned over on TK that it would be awesome if B released a pro shot DVD in Hi Def of his favorite shows (like Staunchy\'s multi-camera vids). I would pay whatever price was charged, and pay EXTRA for Bs signature on something like this. Or, how cool would it be to know what went into the creation and collaboration that resulted in his white Gibson being cloned for purchase! So many possibilities for income in these tough economic times, and yet he chooses what appears to be the hardest path, one that alienates fans. He could make all his fans happy without lifting a finger-literally, and make a load of money, we know he\'s an extremely intelligent artist.

Buckethead, I wish the best for you. I hope someday you\'ll let us know what the situation has been for you musically lately-we respect your privacy and don\'t wish to probe into you personal life. I\'m still very happy to have the huge back catalog of your music to listen to.