Customer Reviews

Colma

5 star:		(58)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you're a Buckethead fan, you're invariably drawn to his inventive technique, his furious yet tasteful blend of speed, heaviness, and melody, not to mention his quirky sense of humor. As such, Colma will be a surprise for many people. Here, Buckethead sheds all his pseudo-metal bombast in favor of a slow and mellow album of incredible beauty. Many fans might be turned off (or even put to sleep) by the change in sound, but if you don't mind lighter, less intense aural experiences, Colma proves to be rewarding album.

The songs are largely acoustic based, with only the occasional electric guitar (most notably on the dynamic solos that close "Machete"). The music is prominently soothing, sometimes beautiful, and sometimes establishing an ineffable emotional clarity despite the fact that no words are ever spoken. This is a testimony of how expressive Buckethead's guitar playing is. Most of the melody lines are great with a few that are merely good. It's nice that the album included a few string instruments on some of the songs...the interplay between guitar and strings is always nice. Personally, I would have liked to see a piano worked into a song or two -- I really think it would have fit some of the tracks. This is just a wish however, and the lack of a piano doesn't detract from the music.

The music is great, although diversity is a problem. Because every song follows a very formulaic structure the same tempo is used for nearly every song, the CD can feel like a sludge of almost interchangeable tracks. The songs ARE excellent, though, and if you give it enough attention you will see that the music does explore many subtle variations of the main musical idea. Also undermining some of the album's excellent music is the lifeless nature of the looping drums. Usually it doesn't bother me, but there are times when I find myself unwittingly giving them too much attention and I am a little irked.

Nearly an hour of like sounding slow songs might be a hard sell, but the music IS great and Colma's merits shine past its flaws. In the future, I hope Buckethead makes another album like this but with more visceral drumming and a little more attention to song variety.

I personally love this album because Buckethead changes his playing style from diminished robot-esque solos (not that those aren't sick) to simple chords and melodies with the occasional slow solo. His fast solos are amazing too, this guy is one of the few people I know who can pick and fingerpick at the same time. My favorite song on the album has to be Big Sur Moon, he plays this song each time he gets a solo spot, even did it when he was in GNR and played it at Rock N Rio. To me, this is like his "Eruption."

As a decades-long hack guitar player, my musical tastes are fairly predictable in general. To me, hearing the guitar played well, regardless of silly genre cliches, classifications or context is always a great joy and never fails to lift my mood, engross my mind or, best of all, simply makes me smile. And while my musical tastes are all over the place, nothing will ever supplant the love I have for great guitar work.

Ever since I stumbled onto his video Satch Boogie on MTV's Headbanger's Ball in the 80's, Satriani has been my favorite guitarist/musician, supplanting even Alex Lifeson as my own personal sentimental fave. Since then, I have watched with immense satisfaction as Satriani has reaped the well-deserved accolades and commercial success commensurate with a musician of his skill, dedication, mastery and utter love of the guitar.

The list of guitarists whose work I love and admire is too long to name - the worst part is, despite how "deep" I like to think my list is, the terrible truth is that I have barely scratched the surface, even after more than 30 years as a guitar lover.

One of my greatest musical joys is the discovery of some heretofore unexplored talent - shaking my head in awe, amazement or simply humble appreciation at hearing someone create beautiful and often amazing music from the instrument I so dearly love.

Which brings me now to Buckethead.

I have long been aware of Buckethead - he has been hovering at the edge of my musical radar for years. In fact, I recall seeing him guest star with Steve Vai during one of the G3 tours years ago. But sadly I never made the leap and gave his work any attention at all. I am not sure why, but I think it may have to do with his truly bizarre [but amusing] public image - I guess I just never gave him any credibility, regarding him as yet another poser/wanna-be hiding behind a mask.

BIG MISTAKE...

In recently refreshing my mp3 collection for a new mp3 player [the generally EXCELLENT Sony E345], I stumbled upon a track from Buckethead's COLMA which a long-departed friend passed to me ages ago. I still remember that life rudely intervened and I just never got around to listening to it - but over the years, through multiple computers, that single track got migrated along everything else digital I own.

That track, I have now discovered, is Whitewash and I sit here now writing this as I listen to COLMA for the very first time. Needless to say, only halfway through the CD, I feel compelled to contribute my own thoughts on Buckethead's work.

There are many wonderful [though not as many as there should be] Buckethead reviews out there and having just discovered him, I am in no way qualified to reflect cogently on his work. So here are some words which now come to mind about Buckhead:

remarkable
extraordinary
near-genius
masterful
intense
melodic
brilliant
deceptively deep
strangely beautiful
evocative
unique
thought-provoking
perception-changing
genre-defying

I could go on and on...

COLMA is simply not to be missed.

I can't tell you how much I look forward to experiencing more of Buckethead's voluminous work. Please do yourself a favor and do the same...

cheers,
-mariusar

This is my first Buckethead CD and as a fan of such artists as Steve Vai, Marty Friedman and Eric Johnson, I must say that I was impressed. Buckethead brings his own creative edge to the genre and in the future I will be sure to keep an eye out for more albums by this innovative artist.

________________________________________________________________
Thank you for reading my review.

Well as a huge fan of Buckethead this cd when it first came out really showed me how universally talented Mr. Brian "BUCKETHEAD" Carroll is. When my ears first heard this cd my mind was shocked that it was Buckethead. "Colma" did not sound like Buckethead's musical style, on my first spins, and had to literally think and ask myself is the same guy? For instance if you take his follow up album "Monsters & Robots" and listen to this "COLMA" cd you will think it is not the same guy.

Some people may have to give this cd a few spins before they get it, but when they get it(if they get it), look out for it will get a lot of ware. This cd is in my opinion the best post modern acoustic/semi-acoustic instrumental album out there. Just a beautifully romantic and yet somehow very bizarre album. This cd is an instrumental brilliance that only bucket could of made. Buckethead really pushed his music to new boundaries on this one.

From the following 13 songs only maybe 3 of them, in my opinion, are mediocre while the rest are really good solid songs and some are some of his best work ever:
1. Whitewash 9/10
2. For Mom 11/10 LOVE THIS SONG!
3. Ghost 8/10
4. Hills of Eternity 8/10
5. Big Sur Moon 12/10 a masterpiece esp live version!!
6. Machete 12/10 awesome pushing the boundries song!
7. Wishing Well 8/10
8. Lone Sal Bug 7/10
9. Sanctum 7.5/10
10. Wondering 7.5/10
11. Watching the Boats With My Dad 7/10
12. Ghost (Pt. 2) 7/10
13. Colma 8/10 I hate this song but it is still good and scary!

Out of the 13 songs these 3 songs are must listens:
2. For Mom
5. Big Sur Moon
6. Machete

These 3 songs in my personal opinion are some of the best guitar work from Buckethead's young musical career. "For Mom" is a beautiful song that will get plenty of repeats and it a simple song to play and it is just an amazing song. Song #5. "Big Sur Moon" is one of the best songs ever written in regards to instrumental music. This song has some very powerful hand tapping techniques that are reminiscent of Eddie Van Halen's "Eruption", but in an ambient moody way. This song Buckethead almost always plays live and the live version is even better! "Big Sur Moon" is just an out of this world instrumtal masterpiece & the only problem with it is that it is too short. Song #6 "Machete" is hard to describe but just mindboggling and fits perfect hearing this right after "Big Sur Moon" it just wonderful the way the dj beats, the drumming of Brain, the bass of Bill Laswell and the guitar frenzy of Buckethead made this song such a brilliant song that pushed new boundaries into a musical journey of pure instrumental genius.

This is an acoustic/semi-acoustic album, but believe me it is all that. Yes, it may take you a few listens to get it but trust me this is one of the best instrumental albums ever made. A definitve masterpiece in the instrumental guitar genre. My advice to you is:

GO BUY, BORROW, BEG, OR STEAL THIS ALBUM!

(...)

This shows yet another aspect of Buckethead that many people seem willing to ignore or be surprised by. If one has followed Buckethead from the early Praxis days, he or she should know that Buckethead is as capable of playing heartrending lyrical solos as well as his famous jaw-dropping over-the-top, rip-your-face-off shred licks. The compositions here are all first-rate, it seems to be the arrangements and the treatment in production that's a little inconsistent here and there. It definitely could have used a little more shifts in tempo, variety of drum textures, and overall dynamics. Still, the tunes are wisftul, pretty, trance-like, and melodic without being melancholic. The playing is superb as you may expect from Buckethead, but next time, it'd be great if he would spice up the arrangements with more steel-string colors and less echo on his sound. These minor complaints aside, I'd heartily recommend this album to newcomers and Buckethead fans who have not yet added this album to their collection. It's not the definitive Buckethead album, but it sheds light on another aspect of Buckethead that shows he is a lot more than a shredder. My "true" rating for this album would be 4.5 stars. But since .5 would be rounded off to the higher number it gets a 5. Colma 2 should be really interesting. I understand it's in the works and that we should be seeing it fairly soon.

Sure, I love it when Buckethead picks up his Jackson V axe and just shreds away and dances up and down the neck like lightning, but this is something else! Halfway between laidback contemporary jazz and chilled out modern rock, this is one of the most peaceful and emotional instrumental albums I've ever heard. Ol' Bucket proves he's more than just a masked thrasher, he's a great serenader and one of the most brilliant guiatrist in the world.

You can ditch the augmented/diminished whole tone stuff normally associated with Buckethead's playing, because you won't find it here. This album is such an amazing display of melody that it makes you wonder how this could be the same composer under the mask as the one who is known for such "outside" playing. Not that this stuff is "inside" to the point of being cliche; actually, far from it. This stuff is very groovin' and melodically mellow. Listenable whether you're hosting a get together, writing, reading, going to sleep, etc., this album has relaxation written all over it.

For those of you fans of Buckethead who are dying to have something to throw at all the naysayers and music snobs, toss this their way and see what they have to say.

For those of you who have only heard the crazy guitar solos and seemingly melodically-devoid material of Buckethead's, go into this album with more of a Phil Keaggy frame of mind. Don't expect technically challenging music at all; just enjoy what you're listening to.

The story goes, this album was written for his mother in a time when she was very ill (cancer, I believe, but I could be wrong). If it's good enough for his ill mother to enjoy (and no, not just because she's his mom), I'm pretty sure you'll find it to be equally as enjoyable.

I'm all about Buckethead's mindboggling technique and unique sense of note choice, but to me, this is the stuff that helps to define Brian Carroll. It shows that the man doesn't do what he does out of sheer randomness, but rather by musical choice and that makes what he does even twice as amazing as it already is without the confines of a definition.

Get this album if you love mellow and melodic music, even if everything you've heard about this guy is nowhere near your perferred acoustic/melodic genre.

When I first heard of Buckethead, he was shredding for a recent incarnation of Guns n' Roses. I then happened to also hear the song "Binge and Grab"(off of Giant Robot, I believe) and it blew me away. This album was a blind purchase, and I expected a thrash metal album. Now, of the over 1,000 CDS I own, it is the most listened to in my collection (needless to say I was pleasantly surprised).

Good songs come and go, and rarely does an album have more than one. Suffice to say, it is very hard for me to listen to this album without hearing every track. What Buckethead has created here is a touching melodic, landscape that a hack like myself has trouble putting to words.

As usual, Buckethead has no trouble showing off his guitar chops. He still makes time in this album to throw in a few face meltin' solos. However, this album is more than guitar rock, it's great music to sit back, relax and let yourself go.

In short, if you want an album that can cheer you up, bring you down, and pick you back up again all in about an hour, you will not be disappointed in this purchase.

I don't even listen to anything except soft rock and rap. But I heard this CD from my friend and it was exactly what I was looking for. No words to complicate things, just relaxing guitar and drum beats. I recommend this album to everyone