Throwback Thursday: Colma, by Buckethead

In 1998, the strangest character in rock Buckethead put out his fourth studio album: Colma. The man adorned with a blank white face mask and a chicken bucket atop his head decided to go a route he hadn't gone up to that point in time: entirely acoustic. This album was said to be a gift from Buckethead to his mother because she had developed colon cancer and he wanted her to have some nice music to listen to while recovering.

I have to admit that Buckethead hit the nail on the head with Colma. He achieved the goal he set out to attain, which was make nice relaxing music. In Colma Buckethead proved that he was more than just another shredder with a gimmick. However, even though Buckethead went unplugged, that made the music no less Buckethead. There might not have been the kind of heavy and occasional shredding tunes he is known for, but there was still that sense of darkness and creepiness that is his trademark. This time Buckethead managed to still do those things while at the same time doing it with some emotion.

Hills of Eternity is one of my absolute favorite Buckethead songs of all time. It has a bit of a hip-hop sort of drum beat to it, but the guitar parts are beyond hauntingly beautiful. It kind of washes over you with the coolness of night and eases your frayed nerves from the stress of the day. The way it flows and progresses feels incredibly natural. When you're done listening to it, it isn't really over. It's one of those tunes that will kind of stick with you for a long time to come. In the middle of the cold dark night, you'll play it once again.

Big Sur Moon is part of what lets you the listener know that Colma is in fact still a Buckethead album. It honestly is some of the finest fast acoustic playing I've heard in some time. The odd thing is that it doesn't even sound like shred. The quickness and echoing of the notes and the overall atmosphere the song provides gives you a sort of foreboding tension, as though you are expecting for something to leap out of the dark at you at any moment. Be careful. You never know when you might end up being next.

Regardless of what kind of musical genre you like, Buckethead has something for you to listen to. He covers a wide variety of styles in his playing. Colma is definitely a nice change of pace from what Buckethead usually does, even though that in itself is pretty damn awesome. Whenever I need to unwind and de-stress, Colma is one of my go-to albums. If you play it along with rainymood.com then you will get an even more calming experience. This is definitely a must-have for Buckethead fans and for those who just want something nice to listen to.

Colma, by Buckethead receives 4 out of 5 stars.

Track List:

1. Whitewash
2. For Mom
3. Ghost
4. Hills of Eternity
5. Big Sur Moon
6. Machete
7. Wishing Well
8. Lone Sal Bug
9. Sanctum
10. Wondering
11. Watching the Boats With My Dad
12. Ghost Part 2
13. Colma

Buy the album on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Colma-Buckethead/dp/B0000067WV/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1461283662&sr=8-1&keywords=Colma