Ritchie Blackmore - one of the few original members of the band still present for this album - left the band after the tour for this album because he thought that they were straying too far away from their original sound. That should tell you everything you need to know about this album.

This album left me extremely disappointed. Seeing as this is one of the final albums in Deep Purple's discography that is still seen as a classic, I was expecting to like this more. If this is the best that ... read more

Pike #275

This Pike has a very emotional vibe to it, likely due to the fact that this was the Pike released just before Buckethead's hiatus from releasing new material so that he could focus on touring for the rest of 2018 and the majority of 2019. It's another one of those Pikes that I would usually call a "Colma clone," but this one is actually really good. Like, REALLY good. Like, one of his best non-experimental albums, and I actually like this MORE than Colma, so that's saying ... read more

Pike #274

Buckethead's first of two pikes from 2018 is surprisingly good. I actually wasn't expecting to like this one too much for some reason, but I ended up liking it quite a bit. Although it does have a basic sound for Buckethead, the riffing is good enough for me to forgive it.

Pike #273

Buckethead's final Pike of 2017 is a pretty cool album. It has those experimental electronic-sounding guitar riffs that make Buckethead unique, and its sound is overall very fun, but honestly this is just the same album again. Not a bad album by any means, just a bit tiresome after hearing it hundreds of times before.

Pike #272

Yeah, uh, this here ambient album sure is ambient. Like, this is the kind of music you'd listen to if you wanted to relax or sleep, but looking at the creepy album cover I wouldn't think this was intended as a sleep album. If it is an album intended to help the listener relax then it works, but I'm not sure if it is so I'm just gonna slap it with a strong 5 and be done with it.

Pike #271

A mostly good album. There are one or two tracks that didn't work for me, but the rest were really, really good. It's honestly surprising how after over 300 albums Buckethead is still able to make really good albums such as this one.

Pike #270

Damn, this is some amazing dark ambience. Like, this may be Buckethead's best dark ambient album ever, and he's done quite a few of those in the past. Seriously one of the best albums that I've ever heard from Buckethead.

Pike #269

Yeah, this album is just boring. Some decent enough riffs, but it's stupidly uncreative. This is just the same album for the 200th time now. Also, this is my 300th Buckethead album, so, uhh, not the best he could have done for his 300th release.

Pike #268

Not the best album in the Pike series, but it is fairly inoffensive. Much like every other album Buckethead has ever done, it's played really well and has its moments, but overall it's pretty safe and is a bit boring at times. Not the worst, but you would expect something better from Buckethead at this point.

Pike #267

A pretty cool, distorted metal album. This isn't anything new for Buckethead, but it's definitely fun whenever he uses this sound again. This album is very chaotic and just fun, really makes you feel like you're on the rollercoaster in the album artwork.

Pike #266

A lack of variety and recycled sounds makes for one of the most boring albums of Buckethead's 2017 output. I really don't see why so many people like this album, it's easily one of the most boring albums that I've heard from Buckethead yet. It's mostly inoffensive, but it's still boring as fuck.

Pike #265

A really weird one, but a fun one! This is Buckethead's most experimental release of 2017 so far, and it's so much fun. It's mostly just heavy riffs and some nice shredding here and there, with some odd noises every so often, but it's a really entertaining album.

Also, there's only ten albums left and I'm literally freaking out.

Pike #264

The shredding made this album. I don't think I've genuinely been so shocked and impressed at Buckethead's shredding abilities in a long while, and this is the first album is quite some time where my jaw actually dropped when I heard it. It's albums like this one that Buckethead is a fucking machine on guitar.

Pike #263

Mostly boring. There isn't much going for this one, it's mostly just unoriginal riffs. Some cool moments here and there, but it's an overall dull listen. Skip.

Pike #262

This has some good moments, a lot of fairly dull moments. It's an overall forgettable album with not too much going for it. It's a pretty skip-worthy album.

Pike #261

An insanely fun rock album, with some great shredding and enjoyable riffing. I can't exactly call this the most unique album Buckethead has ever released, because it isn't, but it's definitely a fun one.

Pike #260

It's been thirteen years since Buckethead last took us to The Island Of Lost Minds, but the return proves to be a lot better than our first time there. Where 2004's Island Of Lost Minds was forgettable and headache-inducing at times, this album is a really solid, really good rock album that never stammers in its ability to make your jaw drop. This is why I love Buckethead. He may just be making the same album over and over again at this point, but when he does make an album like ... read more

Pike #259

Disappointed. I don't understand why many of Buckethead's fans see this as one of his best 2017 releases. It's so boring and repetitive and safe that I just don't see the appeal. This is one of his most boring albums of 2017 if anything.

Pike #258

This album is a big yawn, not gonna lie. It's so damn boring, so repetitive and so unoriginal that I just can't sit through it all without skipping through it.

Pike #257

2017 really is the year where Buckethead lost all originality and started making albums that sound exactly the same as previous ones, huh? This album is okay at best. It's just decent, nothing more. Some good tracks, some boring tracks, an overall inoffensive listen.