Buckethead: Population Override (my review)

[lastroots]

BUCKETHEAD: POPULATION OVERRIDE REVIEW
Finally, three weeks after its release, Bucketheads newest ride found its
way to me. First impression: The artwork (done again by Brian Frankenseuss
Theiss) is strange yet fascinating. The cover shows a city grown over by
woods, under a blue sky with birds flying around. The backcover has a
depressing black, weird image of a city, which looks like an expressionistic
painting. The inlay: a disturbing collage. You gotta see this for yourself.
Since every Buckethead solo album sounds completely different it is a bit
hard to describe these 10 tracks, one of them only 30 seconds long, another
nearly 9 minutes. There are some bluesy tones, but not many, as well as
there is very few shredding included. Mainly clean solo lead guitar playing
beyond imagination. This album comes close to the ones like Colma (1998) or
Electric Tears (2002). But yet it outplays these and takes them a few steps
further. Pinchface does a respective job on the drums while Travid Dickerson
fills in with chilling and melodic keyboard lines, underlaying Buckets
enormeous guitar playing. Bucket and Travis wrote this album together and
their chemistry is quite impressive. Someone on the Bucketboard described
the climax of the music as birth, death and rebirth, which fits really good
in my opinion. And if you close your eyes and just listen to these melodic
tunes and connecting the to the song titles, you will be taken to another
world. This is meant when one talks about Guitars That Speak. While
listening to this I became sad again over the fact that Bucket has just left
GUNS N ROSES, and I hope that Axls efforts to take him back will be
honoured, even though I doubt it.

Details:
Buckethead: Population Override / Ion Records, 2004
Guitars: Buckethead / Keys: Travis / Drums: Pinchface
Written by Buckethead & Travis Dickerson
Recorded at Travis Dickerson Recording Studios

Tracklist:
1)Unrestrained Growth (7:47)
2)Too Many Humans (8:28)
3)Population Override (8:37)
4)Humans Vanish (0:33)
5)Cruel Reality Of Nature (3:49)
6)A Day Will Come (8:34)
7)Earth Heals Herself (6:38)
8)Clones (4:33)
9)Super Human (4:49)
10)... (1:34)


/lastroots

[madagas]

I bought this one. Very interesting...sounds like something Hendrix would have done when he got bored with rock and roll, absorbed funk and jazz fully, then decided to make an instrumental record in 1973 to 1974. The first song is incredible with Bucket playing some nasty bass as well.

[Slipdisc]

Good review!!  

-PEACE-

[liquidvirus]

Get this album, ITS GRRREATT!!!
man how I wish bucket was still in GNR.
this has some of the most awesome laid back guitar work ive ever heard

[Caligula13]

he is the best guitar player for GNR.
but don't forget great keybord work by Travis Dickerson.