Buckethead w/ Pleeseasaur
4/21/00, The Yucatan, Santa Barbara
Finally, the enigmatic guitarist Buckethead returned to Santa Barbara with his latest project Hook & Pole Gang. A versatile and accomplished player, Buckethead (named so because he only appears masked with a giant KFC bucket topping his head) is best known for his collaborations with Bill Laswell on such projects as Praxis. You're never too sure what to expect from Buckethead-- it could be metal, it could be funk. His 1998 release Colmawas minimalist and ambient. This time around definitely fell into the metal category, as the vocalist, dressed in bloody O.R. clothes (or was it a butcher's outfit?) and shop goggles spoke/sang/screamed away while Buckethead churned out very chunky and sometimes dizzying guitar riffs.
It was the third trip to SB for the absurd one-man opening act Pleeseasaur, a project that combines the weakest pre-recorded beats you've ever heard with a multimedia presentation, ridiculous costumes, and an over the top vocal performance. Imagine Jim Carrey performing songs off a William Shatner record, you might have an inkling of how funny this guy is. If you can't tell, I love Pleeseasaur. I can now sing along to hits like "Beef-Flavored Island," "Dream Barge" and "Strangers Have the Best Candy."
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