Guitar Part, July/August 1999

Interview: Red Hot Chili Peppers

[front]After their “Hot Minute”, the Chilis left us waiting 4 years before delivering “Californication”. It was the time for John Frusciante, the guitarist from the “Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magic” period, to recuperate after his long descent into hell. Explained by Anthony Kiedis and John Frusciante…[/front]

So, is it an extension or a new beginning?

Anthony Kiedis: I see it not as the continuation of things exactly as they were with John. It has been so long since ; everyone has been doing their thing. I think that we have each evolved a lot on our own. So when we got back together, we had even more to say to each other than when we had lost touch. There are feelings that persist, but not all remain. It is not the album that we would have made if we had stayed together back in 1992. It is quite different to what we could have done at the time. So I believe that all that happened was necessary for us to make this album.

So, if you had made that album, in a certain manner, it is precisely because you had taken separate paths?

Anthony: Absolutely. I don’t think we would have been very effective if we had stayed together. It is only in retrospect that we realized this.

John Frusciante: After “Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magic”, I was not there. I was asking myself what was the artistic direction in which The Chilis were headed. I was overwhelmed. I did not like the way in which everyone became accustomed to success and I did not want to be a part of it. Anthony drew his inspiration from the public but I rebelled. It is because I did not have the opportunity to realize what integrity meant and I didn’t understand the mindset of people who were not as lucky as us and so I felt they were worth much more. All I know is that the people I really liked were not appreciated while we gathered everyone else around us. It didn’t make sense to me. It made me sick.

Was there pressure also?

John: No. No one placed pressure on me. But later on, I felt it. Because, when I saw that Anthony and I were not working well together, Flea wanted to put pressure on us to solve the issue. I didn’t know what to do. You can’t force two people who don’t support the same ideals to see eye to eye. But now, our relationship is looking good. Before I quit the group, we did not talk at all, but now he is someone whose company I enjoy the most. I believe his friendship and he makes it so… In a sense, it is thanks to “Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magic”…How we had to incorporate the melodies and chord changes in the format of a group, well, we have developed on this album.

Anthony, is it the return of John that marks a return to the sound then?

Anthony: Not really. I think that we have all changed a lot but I think that it permits the revival of the original spirit. It reminds me of what constitutes the spirit of the group. Without words, but with the music. When we play together, I put any questions about what we do, just as I did when we started. I owe the return of John.

When you played with Dave [Navarro], it wasn’t the same feeling, because he played in a different way…

Anthony: I do not compare. They are two totally different experiences.

John: My approach was to use the group’s first recordings with Hillel and Jack, before trying to incorporate my own ideas. Every time that I joined a group, I adopted this approach prior to my first personal contribution. I don’t think dave did the same.

Anthony: No, in fact, he went on his own experience. This was not as rewarding as a cocktail. It was not his fault.

John: He developed his style when playing with Jane’s Addiction and he pulled it from his own experience, where I was inspired by what had been done with Hillel.

What were the circumstances of Dave’s departure? Was it he who left?

Anthony: I would not say that he really left. It’s just that he stopped working and that everybody knew it. The vibes were not great, not very productive. At the time, the group didn’t communicate much. We had all been busy with other things.

Was it a group decision?

Anthony: I would like to see it that way. At the time, no one knew what genre we could produce. Over time, everyone will understand that it was a mutual decision. Also, his leaving meant that we could do things we couldn’t have if he had stayed.

Are you still in contact?

Anthony: Not really. I left him a message on his bike, to say hello.

John, how did you rejoin the group? How did you contact them?

John: Anthony and I, we saw each other twice. I could see that it pleased him to see me and Vice Versa. I felt that there was perhaps a way for us to do something together and agree upon it. It’s good to find someone who appreciates you when you think that the relation is not possible. It was like “Wow, we could maybe restart something.” It was great.

Anthony, you just called him?

Anthony: A good friend called me to tell me John was nearby and was no longer just in the little world of his. He was ready to make himself available. It seemed an opportunity to resume contact, which I had not been able to do for quite some time. During this time, I had been writing John, just to say what I felt. Two years after his departure, I was always incapable of communicating with him. I was too wound up and confused. Then it passed and I realized that there was no one to blame: it happened because it had to happen. I wanted to share my feelings, but I never finished my letters. I was really sorry. I was rather overexcited when our good friend Bob called me and said that we could go and see him [John].

John (speaking to Anthony): It was nice to talk to you at the Jane’s Addiction concert.

Have you seen the letters John?

John: I knew nothing of this until just now. We have discussed through the media, in interviews.

Anthony: Sometimes, I truly think that there must energy in the atmosphere and that it has to come down to him. I sent messages. When I recovered them there were no longer discussions to bury the past. It was established that they had drawn a line on it.

Your departure, at the time, was rather abrupt…

John: No. It began at the end of the “Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magic” sessions. I know that Flea suspected what was happening. After the the first part of the tour, Flea and I went to a park and we sat down. He said to me: “Is there something you like in this group?”. I said no and that the only reason I was there was because I appreciated him but that I did not feel good. He responded: “You don’t have to stay in the band if it is just for me.” We didn’t discuss it any further, but I’m sure he knew I was going to leave. And you too [to Anthony], no? It happened a year before I left the band.

Anthony: Yes. I sensed it. The downside of your departure is that it happened in the middle of a tour. It was a sudden ending. It was a painful breakup because we were away from home, in Japan.

Are you afraid of your confidence today? It is a condition that requires something solid to rebuild upon. Do you not fear it happening again?

Anthony: No, absolutely not. Presently, everyone is happy living in this band. It is enough for us. I couldn’t care less about knowing what happens later. If one day, someone leaves the group, then, okay. I wouldn’t like to share this adventure with someone who feels forced.

John: I didn’t hurt them by leaving the group. Certain fans, maybe, had this impression. When in a relationship that doesn’t work anymore you don’t stay for the ass or anything. Just like in a marriage. To remain convincing on stage, we must portray to the crowd the feeling of a band that is united. It’s really shit when people in a group disagree. There was not this osmosis during the time of “Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magic”. This is assured because we had spent time together as good friends, but two months after the release of the album, when we were on tour, no one listened anymore. I watched a video of us recently, and it is evident that neither of us was interested in one another. Our inspiration was no longer the groups. Flea drew his inspiration from a sort of anger; Anthony from the public; and I found mine inside me and in outer space. And Chad drew his from Heineken! (loud bursts of laughter). It was interesting, but when I watched the video, I saw why I had left the Chilis. The band resembled nothing.

Anthony: Yes, I felt it. I also remember that during the first concerts that followed the album, it did not reach that degree, we played together again.

John: When I said that we did not listen anymore, we always played together, because there was a chemistry specific to the group. To play, it was what was best. With all the comments I hear, I tell myself that I had a reason to leave and that I did not hurt anyone.

After your departure, you entered a difficult period. Are there other difficulties you encountered because of drugs?

John: I don’t consider it to have been a problem, but the people yes. I am not interested in their opinion. My main frustration, during the tour, was that I had to sit down and do nothing. I have a need to explore deep inside myself. I was so depressed that I left the band. I stayed sitting on my couch, with nothing to do. I couldn’t listen to music, or read books, or watch TV. I didn’t want to just sit and watch the space. I was miserable. I decided that the only way to be happy was to become a junkie. The only time where I felt good was when I was on heroin. My friends who came down the coast at the time saw that I was in a terrible state where I attempted to become happy again. I did that for four years then I experienced two years of sadness and darkness. Hard time because of the drugs.

How did you come out of it?

John: I went to the hospital. There was a need to get by. It took several months to convince me not to get wasted.

You experienced a motorcycle accident. What happened and have you fully recovered?

Anthony: I love motorbikes. It’s the strangest thing. When I’m on a bike, the concentration that is required demands a form of meditation. I do not think about all the stuff that might distract me from my relationship with the sky. I feel instantly peaceful and harmonious as I drive. I went to a park and a woman rammed behind behind. I was smashed against her car. It was really violent. I hit a vehicle and I fell to the ground. I looked at the floor to see my arm had been shredded. It was really bad. I had the balls. I went to the hospital and they performed a lengthy operation. They said had shattered the joint and the nerves were completely botched. After a moment, I asked myself: “Why did this happen? Why was I here with a bit in pieces?” Then I looked around and thought that it could have been much worse. So it should not be dramatized. I am now focused on my remission. I went swimming ever day in the ocean for two months in Thailand, Australia and New Zealand. All the sensation has come back, like they said. So, everything is for the best.

— Amir Ibrahim

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