Buckethead
Back in 1988 I was a subscriber to “Guitar Player” magazine. In the back pages of each issue, the editors would review musical submissions from up-and-coming guitar talents. One of the big mentions that year was an enigmatic guitarist who called himself “Buckethead”. It’s generally believed that his real name is Brian Caroll, but he is something of a mystery. Buckethead wears a white plastic mask covering his face and a Kentucky Fried Chicken bucket on his head. He is 6’6″ tall (over 7 feet tall with the bucket) and never speaks when on stage. And he claims that he was raised by chickens and lived in a chicken coop. Moreover, he is fascinated with Disneyland, particularly the Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean. His web site is essentially a strange haunted amusement park full of monsters and robots. Many of his CDs carry this theme as well.
Buckethead is uniquely strange and virtuosic guitarist. Since 1991 he has released over 20 solo CDs and has made appearances on more than 30 CDs by other artists. He has astonishing facility as a high-speed rock shredder, but easily crosses styles into straight-ahead jazz and funk. His music is full of strange references and inside jokes, some of which seem to be only for his own enjoyment. I have seen him perform live and his playing is absolutely baffling. Last time I saw Buckethead was in Seattle. The audience was largely composed of guitarists, and we listened attentively during the first half of the set, figuring that we could probably play most of what we were hearing. By the midpoint of the show, Buckethead kicked into overdrive. I remember seeing everyone in the room do a simultaneous jaw drop. After the show, everyone was saying “I have no idea how he does that”.
As a musician, Buckethead is positively stunning. He’s a peculiar human, but the world is a better place with a little peculiarity.