Hiatus of Champions

The Red Hot Chili Peppers are one of the biggest bands in the world. If they were to have a tour right now, every venue they would play at would sell out, however large. Speaking from personal experience, I haven't met a single person who didn't like this band. And the coolest part is that they appeal equally to the genders. Their funk rock is masculine enough for men and their harmonic vocals and polished sound are feminine enough to reach out to women. That's not to say there aren't many many exceptions to that rule; it's just an overall trend among women and men. I think it's fair to say that Metallica concerts are sausagefests, while Enrique Iglesias concerts would seem wholly unappealing to most men. That may not be the perspective of a psych major, but I call 'em how I see 'em.

Well, good news, ladies and gents. The Red Hot Chili Peppers got their butts back into gear and into the studio as of October 12th, breaking a painfully long, two year hiatus. Their last album of material was Stadium Arcadium, a hodge-podge of jams with an injection of Anthony Kiedis's increasingly bizarre lyrics. That's not to say the album has its many merits, but it could've been greatly improved if the material was trimmed down to a single album, and the remaining 25 songs were released on a bonus disc or on a deluxe version of the album. Not only that, but whoever mixed and mastered the tracks deserves a healthy slap in the face. RHCP: You proved to us that you could write a boatload of above average songs, but we all know you can up the substance meter for the next album, at the expense of a few trashed songs. I blame Rick Rubin. That said, in my honest opinion, Blood Sugar Sex Magik, One Hot Minute, Californication, and By The Way were all musical masterpieces in their own quirky ways.

One could sense the tension in the band after the extensive recording, promoting, and touring process that accompanied Stadium Arcadium. Chad Smith was, as usual, the glue holding the band together, solid as a rock. Flea, having nearly quit the band after By The Way, was a stabilizing force. The real bitterness was between Kiedis and John Frusciante. Now, keep in mind that most of this is subjective. Ever since he cracked and left the band after Blood Sugar Sex Magik, Frusciante has maintained an artificially boosted ego. As a teenager getting the dream job of joining his favorite band, he was submissive to the dominant personality of the bunch, Kiedis, to whom Flea had already taken a similar relationship. John found himself increasingly under Kiedis's thumb, and without heroin, started growing numb to the fame, the girls, and disillusioned with his egomaniacal bandmate. John's reaction was to quit the band and reject every aspect of the hedonistic lifestyle that tied into music. Heroin made this process easy for him. To this day, he stands by those dark years as a necessary period of growth and soul-searching (admitting no mistake). Rejoining the band in 1998 allowed him to quietly reestabish himself in cooperation with the other talents. His musical abilities and songwriting prowess flourished, but it's clear that Kiedis is still under his skin. In an interview of the band doing a song-by-song analysis of Stadium Arcadium, Frusciante expressed frustration that Kiedis "borrowed" his lyrics for "Wet Sand." Also, Frusciante was initially excited with the jam on "Storm in a Teacup," but lost all interest in the song after Kiedis added his ridiculous lyrics. At the moment, every member but Frusciante has confirmed the date of the first recording session. He seems to be under the impression that his solo material is superior to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but in that judgment, he's sadly mistaken. Like most bands, the Red Hot Chili Peppers are the sum of their parts; take away one member and he will fail to reach the same musical heights. Let's hope he comes to; every album featuring Frusciante is fantastic. Yet, perhaps a change of pace, a new guitarist, is in the cards...