Terrifying Music

[In Search Of The]

Has there been any parts of Buckethead's career that has truly unsettled you and/or inspired you? I remember I was around 16/17 when I started listening to Buckethead. Some of the first albums I had heard from him were Elephant Man's Alarm Clock, Inbred Mountain and Bucketheadland 2. All three had impact, but the last 2 in particular... it was like being in a nightmare, but in the best possible way.

With Inbred Mountain, I had never heard music like that before. It was messy, it was all over the place, and yet it was so well structured I was hard pressed to believe it was done entirely on purpose. With each listen, I picked up something new - a new noise, a new layer altogether. I often wondered how the hell some of those sounds were even made. I'd listen to it on headphones in the dark and I'd just take it all in. I live in the countryside neighbouring the city of Manchester, and my town is very green, strange and full of hills. I'd apply the atmosphere from that album and apply it to what I saw around here. I wouldn't just listen to it. I'd feel it. It sounds like a very strange thing to say and believe, but I actually felt it. Every nuance felt like I was controlling it.

With Bucketheadland 2, well... Christ, what a journey. I haven't heard another album since that's made me feel so excited, scared and actually threatened. At the time, it was petrifying. Every sweep was a dip on a rollercoaster that had rigging just a bit too low. I'd have to duck to avoid damage from guitar gymnastics. I could smell the rotting meat, the sinister undertones and the complete disregard for safety in the name of fun. Every inspiration that Buckethead picked up I could hear here - those horror movies, Japanese cartoons, Disneyland, martial arts. Shit, even hip-hop. I could hear it all.

Share with me your stories about terrifying experiences with Buckethead.

[X]

My first Buckethead album (and first album in general for that matter) was Monsters And Robots. Most of the tracks were mostly just face melting solos, but before I had even listened to it I remembered looking at the back cover and thinking how weird it was. That back cover alone was what made me unsure if buying that album was a good idea to begin with being that I'd never owned an album before, but I did know Jump Man and wanted to hear it at least. All the tracks (except for The Shape Vs. Buckethead) were amazing and I couldn't tell you how many times I've heard that album the whole way through from start to finish. However, the songs Stun Operator and Scapula left me feeling a little shocked upon first listen. Stun Operator just had a name that sounded painful, and after getting through enough of the song it sent chills down my spine the way the guitar solo was played. It's like the sound of getting your limbs amputated without anesthesia. Scapula was pretty normal for a while until it started getting towards the end and all the instruments vanished and left me in an endless abyss. Every little sound I heard from that part of the song didn't feel like it was part of the song, but a voice I was actually hearing myself. When I was alone and I heard Scapula, I felt like I understood what it was like being a basket case.

The only other notable one I remember was Bucketheadland 2, but I got that album much more recently so I was already used to Buckethead's style. Yet the last track, Slaughterzone Exit, caught me off-guard. I'll admit, I've got a small hint of hemophobia, and I'd never heard something from an artist that made me twitch the way the sight of blood makes me twitch. Those sound effects were so gruesome, yet they were quiet so I had to actually listen closely to understand what was even going on over the sound of someone getting drilled alive. Unfortunately, that was just too much for me so I'm not gonna be listening to that track ever again...

[NotAHickInIndy]

I must say I love Slaughterzone Exit, probably the most frightening on the record. Watching the Buckethead interview in the park he was pretty creepy, talking about trapping people and feeding them dog food or somthing like that. Maximum Bob is scarier if you ask me, would love to see the two of them together again, if only...