BUCKETHEAD — Pike 69 (review)

Album · 2014 · Alternative Metal

4/5 · 2016-10-26
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BUCKETHEAD - PIKE 69 - CATEGORY OF WHERENESS 28th album out of 60 in 2014 and 99th overall All sounds brought to you by Buckethead and all instrumental This one has 4 tracks that clock in at 29:27

PIKE 69 was one of the releases by BUCKETHEAD that never got rebranded after its initial released and remained that title for a while before it was given the secondary title of CATEGORY OF WHERENESS in 2016. Also while the original four tracks were all untitled, they were also given titles as well the new album cover that fits in with the continuity of the PIKE series. The new album cover is black with dark indigo X-ray images of a pair of hands

“Second Lowest” (7:30) starts with a groovy bass line and a “quacking” guitar lick. It then becomes more dissonant in how the bass and guitar interact with a strong solid drum beat. The interaction of the instruments is very much like certain jazz-fusion bands create counterpoints only this has some heavy crunchy metal elements along for the ride. As the track progresses it adds some funk elements and BH’s oddball time sig freak outs on his guitar. Overall a decent track that will please avant-garde heavy funksters

“Divide This Number” (8:41) starts out slower with a heavy bass line and strange guitar licks but quickly becomes more funk oriented with a rather Steve Vai type of guitar sound going on. You know those odd alien musical scales and the like? Despite the strange liberties performed on the guitar, the steady bass groove and drumming make this totally accessible. There are several parts to this one with more upbeat parts alternating with slower passages and mixes up the riffs many times throughout. There are also segments that have the bizarre electronica freak outs that BH is notorious for

“Numerous Experiments” (5:17) starts out with a jittery guitar riff with a subdued bass and drums with odd time sigs and then the guitar starts a staccato run and then the steam picks up as all of the instruments start to drift in and out of sync together. This one has a faint feel of funk but much more on the progressive and avant-garde side of things. Towards the middle it slows down and weaves some wickedly wild off kilter melodies. It reverts back to a funk metal atmosphere with wild guitar squeals and runs

“Category Of Wellness” (7:59) is yet another strange one starting with a slowly emerging guitar and percussive run and then breaks into the similar avant-metal funk like the other tracks. Like those previous offering, this title track continues the progressive stomp through off-kilter time sigs, tempo changes and interactive dynamics. This one is also accessible enough to be hooked in but just strange enough in every way to offer a sense of tension that will surely please the progressive rock crowds of the lot.

This one is pretty cool and unique in the PIKE series. While BH has blended all the elements aboard on other PIKEs, this one sounds rather distinguished in how these elements swirl about in a chaotic frenzy only kept in order by a rather tame drum beat and bass regularity. The chaos that occurs is always kept within the boundaries of reason and doesn’t take it too far. Somehow this one works for me