IF there is a good way to describe the Red Hot Chili Peppers this quote will do best , ''What does not destroy me, makes me stronger. '' - Friedrich Nietsche. Red Hot Chili Peppers, a band that does not need an introduction with the line up of this album
Anthony Kiedis, vocals
Flea, bass
John Frusciante, guitar, back up vocals
Chad Smith, percussion
When they reached an all star status with there hit single,
Under The Bridge, a lot was expected from there follow up album. And it was a shame when Frusciante left and On Hot Minute was made, it wasn't a good follow up, it couldn't compare to the high standards from Blood Sugar Sex Magik.
And we all know the story after One Hot Minute, Antohny visited John and gave him a guitar and asked him to join again, John conquered his drugs addiction and the classic line up was back again. And it was getting better than ever.
Probably Californication is one of the greatest albums from the 1990-2000 era only a few albums could match the standards the Red Hot Chili Peppers had set. The good thing about the Chili Peppers is that they change their style constantly, although this will be hard for the pre Blood Sugar Sex Magik fans, or for the Californiacation fans who hated By The Way, it's probably a very good thing, you see what a band is capable of and that they are not repetitive
Well lets get back on the album, there are a few ways to start an album, but one that always works is the bass intro, followed by drums and vocals and after that some guitar, and that’s exactly what happens with
Around The World it has a very nice bass riff and the chorus is nice to here
I know, I know for sure, that life is beautiful around the world.
But what makes an album an album, is an album good if everything fits together smoothly and there are no weak tracks .. Probably. Is an album good if it has some killer tracks and a few weaker, I think that too. And between those 2 descriptions I have to pick the 2nd one.
First I will talk about the killer tracks everyone knows,
Californication here you can see how perfectly Frusciante and Flea play together, the guitar and bass fit each other just great, there aren’t many duo’s who can play together like that, so that’s a thing that makes Red Hot Chili Peppers very loved. When the chorus kicks in it’ll be a bit louder but the same formula remains. And then there’s off course
Scar Tissue a track loved by many woman, who think it’s beautiful. Well it is. Again magnificent playing from Flea and Frusciante with a solid back up from Chad Smith, what the lyrics are about I don’t know, but most of the time never know what they are about. There’s a very nice solo in the song.
A good thing about the Red Hot Chili Peppers guitar playing is, they don’t do it because it’s tactical but because it sounds good. Many inexperienced guitar played you can easily learn
Otherside another hit from the album, again the perfect from Flea and Frusciante together(Sorry it just has to be said(many times)). Although I don’t like this track as many other people do, I can understand why they like it.
But off course there are some great tracks hidden in the shadows of the singles, lets begin with
Savior, starts up different then the singles, this is more drum orientated, it has a nice beat and the sudden change to the chorus is great and after that it’s build up great. A track you should listen to if you only know there singles. But there’s more, how about
Easily is a great song too,
The story of a woman on the morning of a war, remind me what you will exactly what we’re fighting for. it’s quit upbeat but it works really good.
It’s kind of hard to pick the right tracks from this album to focus on, many people share many different opinions about what’s good from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, personally I like
This Velvet Glove the most from this album, it starts up with a peaceful clean guitar, with a 2nd guitar and the bass in the background. When the drums kick in it kind of takes control, until the chorus where the intro is repeated. Kiedis has some of his better vocals on this track.
Back to funk,
Purple Stain it’s more like their older work, and has some funky bass work, I don’t feel attracted to this song, but I can imagine the old school Red Hot Chili Peppers fans will love this, so it’s something to recommend when you like their older work.
Parallel Universe is also something not to forget, when it begins you don’t know what to expect, ‘cause it got some kind of hypnotizing feeling in it. This song could work very relaxing and it could work on making you active. It’s hard to describe but this track has something special, a recommendation to everyone.
And how to end an album, a hard track that makes you rock for a few minutes works and ballads seem to work quit well too, especially acoustic ones. And their you get
Road Tripping and it’s a very peaceful song. Makes you quiet and just listen too it at night, and you know what I mean. Great lyrics and a great album closer.
Well what can I say from this album, it’s good it has great moments and almost everyone will find a song they’ll like on this album. Red Hot Chili Peppers, is one of those bands that gets people into rock because people who don’t like rock too much seem to like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and that’s something else that makes them great.
I’ll give this album a
4,5/5 because there are some weaker tracks on the album, but in the long run it’s great.
Recommendations
Around The World
Californication
Purple Stain
Savior
Parallel Universe
This Velvet Glove
With these songs you know what they are about and the diversity of the album
