Buckethead – Biography
This mysterious, hidden agenda guitarist is probably one of the most varied guitarists on the list. A lot of people are quick to judge Buckethead of his ”odd” appearance and his bizarre story of how he got raised on a chicken farm, immediately putting people off listening to his music – silly, silly people.
Buckethead was heavily influenced by the late, great jazz guitarist Shawn Lane. Buckethead can shred like hell, but he does often save melody and heavy duty riffage instead of playing at breakneck speed. His technique is varied, from speed picking to chicken picking; he has proven what an accomplished player he really is. He’s huge in Japan, and also has his own theme park entitled ”Bucketheadland” to show his appreciation, (He loves Disneyland!).
His break came with the 1992 release of ”Welcome to Bucketheadland” which showed us a new shredder was on the scene. He has gone on to collaborate with such artists as Primus (Mainly Les Claypool) and a few years in the hard rock band Guns ‘N’ Roses. He also has contributed to soundtracks such as Mortal Kombat. A very original sounding guitarist, Buckethead is definitely a player to check out.