siLLy puPPy
PIKE 150 - HEAVEN IS YOUR HOME (FOR MY FATHER, THOMAS MANLEY CARROLL) is the 49th album released by BUCKETHEAD in 2015. Like most of the PIKE series this one is once again all instrumental with BUCKETHEAD handling all instruments and production and once again clocks in near the half hour mark at 29:59. While most of these PIKES are seemingly random in ideas and silly made-up titles, PIKE 150 has an actual theme. This one is dedicated to the memory of his father who has departed this Earthly existence and become one with the great unknown. It is the second such type of album after 2014’s “Pike 65 - Hold Me Forever (In Memory Of My Mom Nancy York Carroll). This one is broken up into two lengthy tracks each taking up roughly half the album’s length.
“Heaven Is Your Home” clocks in at 15:12 and is a slow spacey rocker. It has David Gilmour-esque guitars, a slow paced bass line and subdued percussion. It has the feel of melancholy, remorse and loss that you would expect from such a tribute album. While this PIKE seems to have gotten a bit more attention simply for the fact it’s a dedication to his father, musically this isn’t so different than many of the other slower PIKES, however this one has a nice ambience to it that works with the subject matter at hand. It has a nice echo guitar that slowly unravels into a seemingly endless melodic loop. It’s more of a reflective piece than something that will excite the listener and a bit better than similar aimless efforts on other PIKES.
“Always Watching” clocks in at 14:47 and begins with a nice clean unaccompanied guitar that almost sounds like a music box but is soon joined by a echoey bass that fits perfectly with the snail-paced percussion. Another track in a hurry to go nowhere and also sits over the reflecting pool contemplating the past while sorting out the future. No major developments with this one but it does pick up the pace a bit here and there.
This album is basically an ambient slowcore type of rock that has hints of Pink Floydian space rock. Although those who like BUCKETHEAD’s slow and ambient albums will probably like this more than i do, i have to admit that this one has more soul than many of the other albums of this style. You can feel the sense of loss here and since everyone has parent’s whether they’ve yet lost them or not can probably relate to. Not a release i’ll likely be revisiting but one that is a tasteful memorial to a loved one.