Red Hot Chili Peppers Strut Stage at Tepid Rock Concert: Review
The Red Hot Chili Peppers, wearing pants and tattoos, strut the stage like chickens on steroids.
The music isn’t so hot and the California-based band doesn’t live up to its name. They are more like lukewarm vanilla pods.
Then the bass player, Flea, threatens to drop his pants. Onstage wit isn’t a strong point for the funk-rock quartet, yet his comment is a high point of amusement amid a mostly boredom- baiting set. The clothes stay in place.
The group is playing London’s O2 Arena as part of a tour in support of “I’m With You,” its 10th studio album, released in August. The Chilis have sold more than 70 million records, with the breakthrough on 1991’s “Blood Sugar Sex Magik,” which compacted hard rock and funk into a taught, scrawny blast. While guitarists have changed and psychedelic and classic rock styles are dabbled in, this remains the basis of the Chilis’ sound.
There’s backbone to the playing in some ferocious jams. Flea is a coil of energy, slapping out hyperactive bass-lines around Chad Smith’s knife-fighting drums. Josh Klinghoffer, who joined in 2009, chugs out barbs of distorted guitar funk.
Unfortunately, there’s little flesh to these workouts. As anyone who has waded through 2006’s “Stadium Arcadium” album (only to realize there is a whole, full-length, second CD still to go) will attest, the song craft has its limitations.
Too many numbers are structured with the sophistication of a toddler’s Lego effort. The punch of the playing flabbily dissipates into the vast space of the O2.
A few songs, clustered at the end of the gig, buck the trend. A cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground” thrashes with tension. The classic L.A. rock of “Californication” soars, if not quite like the Eagles, then at least like a well-fed vulture. “By the Way” is explosive. It isn’t quite enough.
Rating: *½.
What the Stars Mean: **** Excellent *** Good ** Average * Poor (No stars) Worthless
Information: http://redhotchilipeppers.com/
(Robert Heller is a music critic for Muse, the arts and leisure section of Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)
To contact the writer on the story: Robert Heller in London at roberthelleruk@yahoo.co.uk
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Manuela Hoelterhoff at mhoelterhoff@bloomberg.net.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Warner Brothers via Bloomberg
The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Their latest CD is "I'm With You."
The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Their latest CD is "I'm With You." Source: Warner Brothers via Bloomberg
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Warner Brothers via Bloomberg
Red Hot Chili Peppers band members on the cover of the CD "The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie." From left, Flea (bass), Josh Klinghoffer (guitar), Anthony Kiedis (vocals) and Chad Smith (drums).
Red Hot Chili Peppers band members on the cover of the CD "The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie." From left, Flea (bass), Josh Klinghoffer (guitar), Anthony Kiedis (vocals) and Chad Smith (drums). Source: Warner Brothers via Bloomberg
"I'm With You"
Warner Brothers via Bloomberg
The cover art for the CD "I'm With You" by Red Hot Chili Peppers. Released in Aug. 2011, it is the band's first since "Stadium Arcadium" in 2006.
The cover art for the CD "I'm With You" by Red Hot Chili Peppers. Released in Aug. 2011, it is the band's first since "Stadium Arcadium" in 2006. Source: Warner Brothers via Bloomberg
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