Red Hot Chili Peppers – Stadium Arcadium

It became a big album, not just because of its considerable scope. Even though the tracklist wasn’t certain at the time we listened to the hot new stuff in the noble hotel Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles. So far: 21 songs had completely been mixed by producer-guru Rick Rubin and were waiting to get heard by the journalists for the first time. 4 songs are supposed to follow. And it even can get one more.

The Funk-rock-quartet needed 11 months for their 10th record. 6 months were needed to build the songs and to rig up everything that goes with the strength of the band. “Stadium Arcadium” is going to be released on May 5th and is a DoCD full of songs with irresistible grooves. The jam sessions weren’t placed in Flea’s garage again like in the time of “By The Way” and “Californication”. Instead they rent a room in California Valley – and it was exactly the same place where “Blood Sugar Sex Magik” saw the light of the rock-world for the very first time.

As long as the band was recording rumours went round the internet about a mega-release. First it was planned to become 3 albums, each released in a interval of 3 months.
But this idea failed of the label, which persuaded the band to release a double-album.

Shortly before the release the first statements of the band members went round the internet, like this one from Anthony Kiedis, which makes appetite become a craving: “It’s retardedly painful funk.”

Everybody who interprets the “retardedly” as emotional, in the sense of head – off and gut decisions – on, is right. Flea later said about that: “I’ve got the feeling that there’s a great balance between emotions, dynamics and colours. There’re wonderful songs, intensive rocking songs and some real funky songs. A big range of sounds.”

The record’s opener is called “Dani California”. Watchful fans will already know that this songs is the third (and last) part of the story about a existing character Kiedis sets a musical monument for. The song starts with drums and reminds funnily enough a bit of Blur, but becomes a rousing mid-tempo-song with rap-vocals and a refrain for several voices. A typical RHCP-burner and a real catchy tune. And a nice guitar solo in the outro.
First impression: absolutely a Hit-Single!

John Frusciante: “First there is the rhythm-guitar on the left channel, on the right channel the same riff but traded with the synthesizer. Followed by another guitar in the refrain, a second lead-guitar in the second refrain with an addition to the basic-riff. The third refrain comes along with two lead-harmony-licks on the right channel and another two to the first ones on the left channel. Then three further ones in the center and in the end a few high licks shortly before the end: it’s a downright guitar-orchestra which just leads into and out of the last refrain. I didn’t want to carry it too far.” How modest!

A brilliant upbeat. “Stadium Arcadium” is indeed very calculated and professional, musical, reasoned. Maybe the one or the other song could have rocked a bit more but: guitar-friends will be happy about the growing presence of John Frusciante. The rest is a matter of taste.

The highlights? For sure songs like “Readymade”, one of the most rocking tracks of the album, in which Kiedis tends vocal to the direction of Soundgarden. Just as amazing: “Hard To Concentrate”: a great way in with percussion while Frusciante decorates the song with decent guitar play and occasionally guitar-synth-dots.

And Flea? It seems like he restrains himself kindly, stays a bit in the background. Of course he also has got a big part with “C’mon Girl” which is influenced and carried by his bass line. Like Chad Smith Flea plays straight rhythm orientated, yet maybe not so fixed to the play with Frusciante.

Flea’s reserve is of course not supposed to detract from his achievement. The album would miss something without his unmistakable sound, his style and his pure presence – even without a multitude of flashy moments. “What influenced my view of my bass play on this record more than another thing”, says Flea, “was, that I dealt a lot with Jazz and music theory to get a better overall picture of harmonic coherence. It was very helpful for me to understand the chord maturities better and to get a clear image of what exactly it is that makes a song good.”

Actually: The chemistry of this band seems to be all right. You can hear this on the album. Here four musicians have a lot of fun. Flea: “I’m very happy that this record was produced at a time when we all are at the peak of our artistic abilities.” So then.

Another expression of this is the upbeat to the second part of the double-album which is “Turn It Again”. A song with drums and bass in the beginning Kiedis raps to with a solid self-image. A track full of hit-potential and great guitar playing of John, who you clearly can hear singing the background vocals by the way. An increase of the tempo in the end, nice fuzz-guitar sounds, over and out. Very beautiful.

No doubt: This is Frusciante’s record! From clean chords over effects-loaded sounds and Full-Blast-Leads to jazzy chord-feel – and bandmate Flea is full of admiration: “John has got a very comprehensive idea of music. He’s an incredible musician, well-informed, very concentrated, very spiritual and emotional by making music. He dedicated his life to the music.” And John specifies his jazzy parts: “I haven’t been listening to Jazz a lot, because I think there will never be a better guitarist than John McLaughlin. His play has got everything. I’ve ever been fascinated by his energy, this powerful light which shines through his play. He’s a person who devoted himself to meditation and inspired me to try it myself and helped me on this way with my connection with music.”

His newly stronger grown self-confidence is happily growing with every new record, may it be a solo-record or with the Peppers. But: This one shows Frusciante on the contrary to “By The Way” this time: “If there was time for a solo back then I decided not to play it, every time. The only parts I played on “By The Way” were parts I was able to sing to. I didn’t want to play stuff other guitarist play usually.” This time Frusciante is in a good playing-mood. There’s a big number of solos on this record so the fact that he set great store by playing all of them spontaneous is astonishing. “This is the first time, I make a record where I haven’t had the faintest idea what to play before the recording. On the other records I at least knew how the solo starts or how it ends- this time I had no idea. All solos were played live and spontaneous during the recording. Even those ones which sound composed are improvised. This gives some kind of excite to the song, a certain portion of dirt which I miss on other records.”

The artistic changes are of course just the results of the further development of the own personality: “It fits to the developments as a human I made in the last couple of years. I’ve really done a lot to open myself as a human. That’s a completely new way of life for me. And its hard for me. It’s easier said than done. It needs a lot of my energy to learn to be open like that. And what I’m playing now is really the best I’m able to play. I don’t want to hold anything back this time and set no limits to myself.”

And again it was Frusciante to create this variety of sound. “There are details which are really worth to put the headphones on.”, means John. Teached by his many solo-records he reached his limit to use all qualities of a recording studio. “And it’s a good feeling to have done it nearly perfect this time.”, he says.

For that he gets compliments from Kiedis: “John shines on this record!” What Frusciante gives back to every concerned person: “Our music gets so much energy because everybody loves to listen to each other. We work with the energy of each other and it’s cool that they think the same about me.”

What is missing? You are looking in vain for a real ballad like “Under The Bridge” on this record. There are 2 or 3 songs in this direction – but still a bit too “uptempo” to reach this monumental atmosphere of the named song. But maybe one of the 4 songs nobody have heard yet is a real ballad-hit.

“Really a round record.” says drummer Chad Smith’ conclusion. Round fits good. Because maybe some parts of the double-record are a bit overloaded. But the first impression changes often after hearing it several times. The band themselves are so proud of this record so they would surely love to release all of the 38 recorded songs. But it’s better this way. Not? Well, the coming B-sides will show us.

— Niki Kamila

* Paired with an interview with John.

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