REVIEWS:
One of the innovators of the 'funk metal' genre, the Red Hot Chili Peppers throughout their career have maintained a distinct sound around the complex bass lines of Flea, a rotating cast of guitarists (most notably the inventive Hillel Slovak - who died in an overdose death in 1988 - and current guitarist John Frusciante) and drummers (more recently Chad Smith), and of course, frontman Anthony Kiedis, sometimes obnoxious, sometimes meaningful, occasionally beautiful, often perverted, and usually downright entertaining. The band released three supposedly patchy but still original sounding albums (their self titled debut, Freaky Styley and The Uplift Mofo Party Plan) before their semi-breakthrough with Mother's Milk in 1989, which was the first album recorded with what is commonly regarded as the band's classic lineup (Kiedis, Frusciante, Flea and Smith).
It was Blood Sugar Sex Magik where the band's ambitions really came together on record, and it was also a very successful album commercially, generating two classic singles, "Give It Away" and "Under The Bridge". After a four year absence (which saw Frusciante quit with former Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro replacing him) the band released the dark and moody One Hot Minute, which was still fairly impressive but lacked the distinct spark of their sound, which returned when Frusciante rejoined the band for what was probably the most focused, consistent and enjoyable album of the band's career, Californication, and the even more poppy By The Way.
--Nick Karn
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COMMENTS
i think they are wacky! flea! THE bass player and naked superhero! plucking his bass like his fingers were burning he is my fave! anyhow the band got naked until they packed it all and made wacky experimental music i picture antony kiedis rapping! 'cause i'm the wackiest there is no question i can just dance dance in my pants and in yo' face!
You obviously aren't a chili peppers fan if you don't like uplift, and gave californication a 9. uplift mofo party plan isthe chili peppers at their best.idiot.
(reviewed by Nick Karn)
This is where it all started, a debut album featuring the sound of four L.A. boys who'd stumbled on an almost novelty sound that mixed together funk, rap and hard rock, but they didn't quite know how to make it really work to its' full potential yet. The end result is a really interesting, catchy, energetic and highly erratic album that runs just barely over 32 minutes and has quite a bit of filler, but with the entertainment value and energy running high, it also helps the band has solid production backing them up, with great Flea basslines high in the mix, precise drums, clear-sounding guitars and those always upfront Anthony Kiedis vocals.
Two Chili Peppers' classics, in fact, come in the first half of the album on the most well known songs, with the opening "True Men Don't Kill Coyotes" being a truly awesome 'prowling funk' tune - the vocal growls and chorus yells perfectly capture the spirit of the song title. Plus, "Get Up And Jump" is one hell of a fun horn-laden ditty, with lightning fast vocal raps, basslines and great drum fills after each chorus line. The rest of the album doesn't really come close to those truly awesome numbers, but numerous moments here are still worthy of your listening time. The great guitar riff and vocal response of "Buckle Down" make that number somewhat of a success, the closing instrumental "Grand Pappy Du Plenty" is quite pretty, and "Green Heaven" is an ecologically conscious minor gem.
As far as the other songs go, they aren't exactly horrible, but they all have serious faults that prevent them from truly catching fire. The excellent bassline and bluesy guitar soloing in "Mommy Where's Daddy" is obscured by the voice of a girl whining the title in a really annoying fashion throughout the song, and "Why Don't You Love Me" repeats the line 'why don't you love me like you used to do?' approximately 5 million times, making it a bit grating, while the chorus of "Baby Appeal" features singing of 'the Chili Peppers have... BABY APPEAL' in a really weird voice that's kind of laughable. Elsewhere we have three shorter numbers "Out In LA", "Police Helicopter" and "You Always Sing" that sound like they were just tossed off in about 5 minutes combined, tops. So in all, we have a first effort that's obviously flawed all over the place, but the positive attractive qualities somewhat outweigh the negative ones, so I can still say it's a rather good album.
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(reviewed by Nick Karn)
Somehow, the Peppers' collaboration with George Clinton has found a status as a sort of overlooked 'cult classic', but man, I just can't see why it's so loved. I guess you could say that it's the closest the band ever got to doing a pure 'funk' album, since most of the band's efforts have more than enough trace of rock in them, with horns in the background and Flea's bass playing in perhaps its' most prominent role ever. It's not even that I don't like this style either (for instance, what I've heard of Parliament is a totally exciting riot), but there should at least be a good amount of entertainment and groove power to it, and most of these tracks are just so by the numbers and as far from exciting as possible, plus there's the added annoyance of the band cramming in even more stupid filler than any of their other 80's albums (especially those pointless short tracks near the end), which is quite an accomplishment.
There's maybe only one truly awful song in the title track, an awfully simplistic and boring groove that just seems to repeat itself forever and ever with that 'fuck em just to see the look on their face' line, but still, the opening two tracks ("Jungle Man" and "Hollywood") come out totally flat and unconvincing, particularly the latter's generic 'party' vibe and plodding tempo, the closing "Yertle The Turtle" has annoying spoken bits to go along with pretty much no melody or excitement (though at least "The Brother's Cup", dumb as it is, has some entertaining moments within). Oh, and there's also a whole bunch of absolutely useless brief filler tracks that serve no purpose except for being idiotic jokes and space fillers (particularly the inane "Sex Rap" and the directionless "Battle Ship").
The absolute saving grace of this album, though, are the two fairly excellent highlights. The band didn't actually write "If You Want Me To Stay" and that phenomenally groovy bassline and vocal melody it has (credit that to Sly and the Family Stone), but it nonetheless possesses such a tight, incredible amount of presence that it's easily the best on the album. The other somewhat impressive song is the hilariously stupid "Catholic School Girls Rule", whose fast tempo, lyrics and chanting are so incredibly over the top and ridiculous that I can never resist it at all. Too bad it's so damn short at less than 2 minutes. But regardless of those, do not buy this album, since these two gems can be found on What Hits?!. Unless you totally can't live without brilliantly straightforward material like "American Ghost Dance" or "Blackeyed Blonde", of course.
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(reviewed by Nick Karn)
This is one hell of a messy record in which the Chili Peppers' wildly inconsistent tendencies perhaps reach their peak. On several tracks, the band appears quite focused, with good grooves, solid melodies, and a vastly entertaining vibe as usual. In fact, as far as untamed energy goes, this might be their highpoint, and at their best, the catchy melodies are getting better. At worst here, though, their style wallows in sexism (which creates one truly abominable song which I'll get to later), unfocusedness, and true lack of melody, which comes in a stretch of tracks that unfortunately are all planted in a row on the second half of the album. Not a good effort for guitarist and founding member Hillel Slovak to go out on (this would be his last album due to a heroin overdose).
The first half of this one, though, captures the sound at its' best. The opener "Fight Like A Brave" is a really great macho chant with a fierce guitar riff, engaging raps and a chorus that's sure to get stuck in your head for days, and "Behind The Sun" reflects a growing maturity in the songwriting and instrumentation (with Eastern tinges from a sitar played by Slovak) in a really pretty ode to dolphins and the environment in general (effective softer vocals here, too). "Me And My Friends" is just a good funky and hard tribute to the pure friendship of the band, with excellent energy and a fine hook, and "Backwoods" is just about as engaging, with an insanely crazy rap bridge, a hard-hitting one note riff over nice bass playing, and a general good time. As for the other two first half tracks, "Skinny Sweaty Man In A Green Suit" is a hilarious fast cartoonish interlude, and "Funky Crime" is the sole forgettable track on this side, but it's still at least fine while it's playing.
Which, unfortunately, is something I can't say for the second half - what the heck happened? A funky Bob Dylan cover ("Subterranean Homesick Blues") that doesn't really work on account of its' stale groove, a completely average slow groove in a style that they'd do much better with later on ("Walkin' On Down The Road"), half-baked uncatchy filler ("Orgasmic Anti-Beat Box Band", the really dumb "No Chump Love Sucker"), a head-up-the-ass 'love' song ("Love Trilogy"), and one of the most horrible and offensively tasteless songs I've ever heard in my life ("Party On Your Pussy") are the tracks that all contribute to this falloff. I should give this album a 4 like the last one, since there's no reason to buy it other than completism (again, the best cuts can all be found on What Hits?!) and you might as well just shut it off after track 6, but since half the album is at least good and only one track hits atrociousness, a 5 is probably fairer.
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COMMENTS
Uplift Mofo Party plan rocks dudse what r u talkin about. I've met the chili peppers. We have talked about their albums. The songs meen a lot more than wut you say about them.
J.
peace
i agree with this guy u have issues if u dont like uplift theres no way ur a true fan and i believe ur missing live in hyde park frm ur list what a retard u must be! get 2 england and buy it its hardcore!
(reviewed by Nick Karn)
The first album with the band's classic lineup, Mother's Milk finds the band coming into their own a bit more songwriting wise - the overall quality of songs is still too patchy, with the lowest material being much too corny, inane and unfocused - "Magic Johnson" is nothing more than a stupid chant, "Stone Cold Bush" is forgettable mostly due to its' lyrical content and "Punk Rock Classic" is far too insubstantial and generic. The opener "Good Time Boys" is solid, however, and gets the album off to a pretty anthemic start, and "Subway To Venus" grooves along nicely, although those two tracks can't help but pale in comparison to the phenomenal sobriety ode "Knock Me Down", which has an amazingly tight band performance, great lyrics and energy with very insightful lyrics and an infectious melody - one of the absolute best songs of their career, in fact.
"Johnny Kick A Hole In The Sky" has a whole lot of fury and venomous, politically charged lyrics to go along with convincing bass work from Flea, while despite its' short, less than 2 minute instrumental status, "Pretty Little Ditty" has greatly inspiring guitar melodies and is quite beautiful. The two covers featured here also prove the band were very skilled at covering other artists' material, as Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground" and "Fire" from Jimi Hendrix are transformed into high energy blasts of entertainment, somewhat different from their original incarnations. Plus, throughout these highlights, and even on the weaker material, Flea is always a joy to listen to.
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COMMENTS
Stone Cold Bush = best song of all time
At that time, it basically was the whole groove on that album
(reviewed by Nick Karn)
Finally gelling to their great songwriting potential and breaking through to the mainstream in the process with Blood Sugar Sex Magik, the band delivers nearly 75 minutes of their powerful funk metal sound, with very strong, tight musicianship, the 'odes to sex' lyricism of Anthony Kiedis (hence the title), and catchy melodies. The album delivers with pretty much one great number after another and doesn't let up too much, beginning with the socially aware anthem "The Power Of Equality", which has great energy and lyrical intent, while "If You Have To Ask" has an unstoppable groove and lots of attitude in the chorus, and in contrast "Breaking The Girl" is a downright beautiful acoustic ballad with awesome melody and flute touches (plus a 'pots and pans' solo section!)
"Funky Monks" works its' magic with a great bassline and nice guitar interludes, "Suck My Kiss" is entertaining sexual pervertedness with a great chorus, "I Could Have Lied" is another beautiful-sounding, moody, but this time pessimistic, acoustic ballad, "Mellowship Slinky In B Minor" has a really catchy, fun chorus and nice tempo changes and "The Righteous And The Wicked" is a nice setup for "Give It Away", one of the band's biggest hits - a classic radio staple and an awesome sing along track. Following is the weakest cut on the album, the title track, which has a noticeable lack of energy, but it's made up for in yet another smash hit "Under The Bridge", which has affecting lyrics and vocals and a nice mood with good drama in the ending section.
"Naked In The Rain" continues in the great party vibe the Peppers are most known for, and "Apache Rose Peacock" is one of those songs where Kiedis obviously had his head somewhere else when coming up with the lyrics - the same can also be said for the classic, energetic funk rock number "The Greeting Song" (awesome chorus). The tribute to deceased guitarist Hillel Slovak, "My Lovely Man", is the last in a series of beautiful lyrical odes, "Sir Psycho Sexy" is a disturbing cartoonish sex number that nevertheless wins on the great playing and melody and its' phenomenal middle part, and the album closes with a fast-sung minute long cover version "They're Red Hot", which is merely filler. A consistently excellent mix of songs to be heard here, and a deserved breakthrough release.
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(reviewed by Nick Karn)
Consisting mainly of the band's hits in the 80s (only "Under The Bridge" is represented from Blood Sugar Sex Magik for contractual reasons), What Hits?! is a great collection for those very unfamiliar with their quite patchy early material - signs the early albums are uneven are apparent from listening to it. It's not in chronological order, but that doesn't hurt the collection at all as it effectively flows like an studio entire album. Singer Anthony Kiedis and bassist Flea are the only two members that have lasted the band's entire career, with seven guitarists and three drummers that have spent time with the band, so it's no surprise those two are the main force on each song. "Knock Me Down", "Get Up And Jump", "Higher Ground", "If You Want Me To Stay", "Behind The Sun" and "True Men Don't Kill Coyotes" are among the highlights that effectively capture the band's strong songwriting, although even on this collection there are very unfocused and unsatisfying numbers within these 18 songs (most notably the annoying "The Brothers Cup" and the mediocre single "Taste The Pain"). It's still very worthwhile, however.
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(reviewed by Nick Karn)
This was the band's first new studio album in four years after John Frusciante's departure, and his replacement, Dave Navarro, while stylistically not quite fitting in with the rest of the band, gives the music here a somewhat darker atmopshere with a number of mood shifts throughout the songs, apparent in the first half of the album, which is the somewhat more strong and consistent one. "Deep Kick" features a haunting spoken word section leading into a great dark funk workout that builds to a perfectly placed, powerful solo section, and "One Big Mob" is a similarly epic structured track that's even more of the usual energetic rap funk blast before moving into a slow, eerie middle section. "Coffee Shop" also proves, even without the chemistry of the original lineup, the energy isn't totally gone in the Chili Peppers camp, as it delivers outstanding impact.
This album also introduces a sort of 'solo outing' from bassist Flea, his angry and bitter rant "Pea" is sung in a calm and optimistic manner, giving it a great balance, while the hit singles, the energetic and album defining opener "Warped", the mostly acoustic and moody "My Friends" and the ridiculously fun (almost child like in places) "Aeroplane" are strong efforts. The second half is somewhat weaker, however, as "Walkabout" and the title track drift around aimlessly, while "Falling Into Grace" and "Shallow Be Thy Game" lack excitement or good playing, although two dark and emotional 'tribute' ballads to dead celebrities in "Tearjerker" (to Kurt Cobain) and the closer "Transcending" (to River Phoenix) save that half from total mediocrity. A good comeback effort from the band overall.
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[email protected] (tony souza)
I pretty much agree with the review. A lot of people say this is the worst album by this band, but I like Navarro's style of playing. He adds more texture to the music and also gives it more of a harder, darker edge. There are a couple of duds on here, but the music varies enough from song to song to keep it interesting. "Walkabout" is a excellent track.
Dave Navarro was probably the most technically gifted guitarist the Peppers ever had, but the man just does not have as much feeling or emotion in his playing as Slovak and Frusciante. Not to mention that a light speed scale shredder really has no place in the Peppers. I was glad to see that John came back for the new album, and how mearly perfect he sounds playing one note per every ten seconds (exaggeration).
Anyways, I loved warped, which is a technical tour-de-force, "Airplane" was catchy in a cheesy sort of way, and "My Friends" is a great little ballad with a emotional bridge and solo. "Coffee Shop" was ok----but all in all I thought this to be a very mediocre album. I'd give it a 6.
yet again, you aren't a fan.
(reviewed by Nick Karn)
After yet another four year gap between albums, which saw the departure of Dave Navarro and the subsequent reunion with John Frusciante, the band's real 'comeback' effort Californication sees the band's chemistry and songwriting efforts at arguably their highpoint - that so called 'chemistry' between the band has probably never been better - it's really a treat to hear how bassist Flea plays off Frusciante's guitar parts (and comes up with mind-blowing, intricate basslines as well), with killer grooves from Chad Smith (an essential part of the sound by this point), and Anthony Kiedis coming up with his mellowest and creatively exciting lyrics to date. The band also silences doubters who thought their masterpiece Blood Sugar Sex Magik could never be topped, as this album can arguably boast better consistency and diversity.
The album opens up with "Around The World", which represents the album well in its' musicianship (especially in the bass work) and powerful mellow chorus section, and "Parallel Universe" works a furious repetitive groove with a hard-hitting chorus. The lead single "Scar Tissue", meanwhile, sounds a bit uninspired at first listen but the band's newly invigorated style slowly drags you in. "Other Side" finds Kiedis getting more philosophical lyrically with great band backing, and "Get On Top" features an astonishing groove with amazing sexual energy, and even that song features some thought-provoking lyrical additions, while the title track is what the last album tried to be, but for the most part fell a little short - it's an excellent mood setter.
"Easily" continues the momentum, although the slow ballad "Porcelain" is too mellow for my tastes and actually stops the momentum for a couple minutes, but the intriguing "Emit Remmus" ('summer time' spelled backwards!) is a strong track which makes up for it, and even has a distinctly 'British' feel. "I Like Dirt", despite its' dumb title, is an amazingly irresistible short funk romper (easily singable). The acoustic touches, harmony work and mood shifts of "This Velvet Glove" and "Savior", meanwhile, like the title track also fulfill the promises One Hot Minute, and "Purple Stain" is an incredible workout (what a groove and lyrical delivery on this one). Meanwhile, "Right On Time", although short, has a phenomenal bassline in the addictive chorus and the closer "Road Trippin'" may be their most beautiful and inspiring ballad to date, an awesome acoustic number that gives "Under The Bridge" and "Breaking The Girl" a serious run for their money. Excellent album.
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(reviewed by Nick Karn)
I've seen quite a few people call this an awful effort, claiming it continues the mellow line of Californication to a dangerously boring and mellow degree, offering ballad after ballad with very little energy anywhere. It seems to me, however, that the same people who say it's weak also think their horrendously uneven early albums were great, and I will never agree there. Besides, this record isn't so much overly mellow and unenergetic (though I will admit the exciting edge is missed in parts) as it is gorgeously poppy and mature in its' overall sound. Essentially, the Chili Peppers have left their earlier sound, for the most part, behind them in favor of a sunny California-tinged pop style, and besides, for a pure pop album, it actually has quite a bit of variety - from the usual rap-tinged vocal deliveries, pop ballads, a bit of Latin flavor, interesting guitar textures (John Frusciante does a great job here throughout - maybe his solo work particularly inspired him), some ska, atmospheric mood pieces, and so on.
And never before has their been such gorgeous harmonizing and/or backing vocals on a Chili Peppers album - you don't need to look any further than the lead single and opening title track, the biggest burst of energy here, with excitingly sung raps and a very good hook that could have come straight off the second half of Californication. Or the fine "Let It Be"-styled organ ballad "Tear", which explodes into emotional uplift come chorus time, or the gentle "Dosed", where Flea's vocal entry actually gives the tune a majesty created by the lullaby-styled atmosphere in the fantastic guitar work. Even the not too spectacular "Midnight" (which still has a fine orchestral opening and an eerie mood that manages to fit its' title), has those harmonic qualities in abundance, as does the exciting pop singalong "Minor Thing", one of the most melodic tunes of the whole set (with more fabulously uplifting guitar work) and the slow sorta introspective ballad "This Is The Place". Those are just a few of the more prominent examples - let's just say that quality is apparent over a good amount of the album.
What also makes By The Way work well, though, are attempts at creativity. Like I noted before, Frusciante's guitar work is at its' most excellent, with an impressive amount of diverse tones that also frequently lead back to his most resonant passages. His presence is definitely felt on the chaotic and catchy funk rocker "Throw Away Your Television" (where his noises here are a heck of an interesting compliment to Flea's bassline here), plus he's able to handle Latin-flavored acoustic tones perfectly on the gorgeous and extremely rhythmic "Cabron Cabron" and fast ska on the equally melodic "On Mercury". But who's playing what sounds like haunting keyboards that give "Warm Tape" a really atmospheric, nighttime mood to contrast the chiming chorus, or the transcendent pop masterpiece "Universally Speaking" a mysterious quality? That latter song, incidentally, seems to sum up the album's best qualities - perfectly flowing pop melody, with the harmonies and guitar work at their most gorgeous.
Of course, a pop-based album like this one doesn't really need to be over 68 minutes long, and not surprisingly, this does lead to the biggest flaw which hurts the rating a little - the more unnecessary and underwhelming tracks. While nothing on here is bad (especially when compared to some of the half-baked crap they did in the 80's), there are a few songs I could live without. "Can't Stop", for example, is mostly boring rap-rock that offers nothing interesting in that department, and along with "The Zephyr Song", it seems to do a bit of melody-recycling instead (in the latter song, didn't we hear that particular melody already on "Universally Speaking"?) "Don't Forget Me" is pretty slow and cliched, "I Could Die For You" is a more typical, ordinary, ballad, and "Venice Queen", although it has more beautiful harmonizing and melodic quality during its' 'acoustic overdrive' mode to close out the album, has a more unmemorable, slow-building first part that doesn't really fit in. Nevertheless, even though the album is denied an 8 due to the filler, it is still one of their most pleasant and enjoyable ones - if you enjoy the Chili Peppers for their poppier side, that is. Pushes 7.5.
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