Buckethead & Friends

Buckethead & Friends “Enter The Chicken” is guitarist and songwriter Buckethead’s newest album. The album is being released on System of a Down’s front man Serj Tankin’s record label, Serjical Stirike Records. Serj also produced the album and appears on three songs. You might remember Buckethead from the new Guns and Roses which featured Axle Rose, Buckethead, and three or four new musicians I can’t remember. Buckethead was the one in the band with the bucket on his head. The new Guns and Roses broke up after Axle Rose kicked him out for not taking the band seriously (but how can you take a new Guns and Roses band seriously). Even though Buckethead wears a bucket on his head everywhere he goes he is a very serious musician. He is known as a skilled guitarist; he worked with bands like Primus and has even worked on musical scores for major motion pictures. “Enter The Chicken” is Buckethead’s collaboration with different types of singers. The eleven different vocalists on the album specialize in musical styles ranging from opera, rap, metal, rock, and hardcore. The first track is an opera intro which leads into the single “We Are One” featuring Serj Tankin. Serj has a wide rage of vocal abilities and uses them all on this song. He goes from a singing to screaming to wails and rants to a whining child’s voice. The next track is titled “Botnus,” which features Efrem Schulz from Death By Stereo. Then comes a rap/funk song but with Bucethead’s own twist with Saul Williams on vocals. “Running From The Light” is a softer song and one of my favorite songs, featuring two female vocalist Gigi and Maura Davis. Tracks six and seven have duets between female vocalist Azam Ali and Shana Halligan and producer Serj Takian . The Interlelude after track seven was written and performed by Donald Conviser which mocks the previous two songs, then leads into the two of the craziest songs on the album. “Funbus” features Serjical Strike’s own band Bad Acid Trip. “The Hand” has a vocalist named Maximum Bob who screams about his hand over Buckethead’s guitar and a female opera singer. The last track "Nottingham Lace" is an instrumental which shows off Buckethead’s skills and abilities on guitar. “Enter The Chicken” is definitely one of Buckethead’s best albums and includes elements you wouldn’t find on most rock records that are being released today.

Incredibly Strange Music Volume’s one and two:

“Regardless of topic, every RE/Search book deals with the same problems: maximizing creativity and freedom in a world whose agenda is consumerism and control.”

RE/Search publishing is a publishing company from founder V. Vale, and is a self proclaimed counterculture library. Other than books they release CD’s, magazines, and films. Two CD’s they have released are called Incredibly Strange Music Volume’s one and two. Both CD’s are collections of some of the strangest music ever released. Some songs are about colors, and some are about mummies. There is a version of the song “William Tell Overture” whistled by the blind virtuoso Fred Lowery. There are also weird surf rock sounding songs, a Hawaiian war chant, and sitar string arrangements. The last song on volume one is tilted “A Cosmic Telephone Call” by a self-styled guru Kali Bahlu. After listening to the songs on both volumes, I would say that calling this music incredibly strange is an understatement.