Denver show…a review…
RHCP played in Denver, Colorado, USA last night and there was something special on the setlist…the-first ever live version of Funky Monks. John also did a new cover song: The Shirelles’ Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? Apparently, a contest winner requested it…as you’re going to see in the following review from Denver Post.
If anything has changed about the Red Hot Chili Peppers over their 23 years, it’s not the veracity of their performances. Superstars since their 1991 album “Blood Sugar Sex Magik” went multi-platinum, the L.A. psych-funk band still retains the same squiggly energy that first propelled them to stardom.
Their Friday night set at the Pepsi Center felt triumphant, as the capacity crowd gyrated maniacally to every impassioned grunt from lead singer Anthony Kiedis. The band delivered both hits and new songs from its mediocre double-disc release, “Stadium Arcadium,” with a precision and force befitting an act of their renown.
Mars Volta opened with a mercilessly meandering set, their prog-leaning songs rendered nearly atonal by the imbalanced mix and yawning venue. Lead singer Cedric Bixler, whose shrill voice rivals Geddy Lee’s, seems to have completely abandoned his post-hardcore roots for an exaggerated ’70s arena rock pose.
Still, people clapped – more proof that complex, blustery noise often trumps substance. And it’s easy to see why the Chili Peppers’ guitarist John Frusciante has played with the Mars Volta in the past: both would go on forever if not for the brick walls of time and audience apathy.
Fortunately the Chili Peppers brought the night back to a visceral level, opening with the foot-stomping “Can’t Stop,” the overhead light display exploding in time with the pummeling beats. Bassist Flea was endlessly entertaining as he jumped around the stage in a colorful, skin-tight body suit. His ability to wring delightfully metallic notes from his instrument is rivaled by few living musicians, Les Claypool among them.
Ubiquitous single “Dani California” conquered the audience, an irresistibly melodic anthem about the Peppers’ favorite two subjects: women and their home state. Iconic images of surfers flashed behind them on the huge color screens, revealing the band’s still-robust allegiance to the culture that birthed them.
For a four-piece, the band conveyed an incredible amount of vigor, barely pausing between songs to take a breath. Sing-a-long favorite “Scar Tissue” featured John Frusciante’s harmonies floating pleasantly over the din. The man can really sing, as evidenced by his impromptu and unadorned cover of The Shirelles’ “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?”
Newer songs like “21st Century,” a self-important clunker, met with a sliver of the reception that hits like “Under the Bridge” and “Give it Away” enjoyed. Even less visible older tracks, such as “Funky Monks” (a fan request from a radio contest), proved that the band set its lasting template while some of its fans were still in kindergarten. True, Kiedis’ muscular, white-boy scat doesn’t hold up as well as it could, but the fat bass lines were more satisfying than many newer songs.Frusciante stole the spotlight again on “Snow (Hey O),” his dexterous hammer-ons and beautiful high harmonies punctuating the loping rhythm. Every member of the band, really, earned their keep, furiously belting out song after song. One of the few moments of pause came when Flea told the audience, “This show is for all the little babies that just came in, and all the old people that are about to go out.”
The show proved that for all their mainstream acceptance and missteps (“One Hot Minute,” anyone?), Red Hot Chili Peppers are still indelibly themselves: freaky California dudes with a jittery, hard-hitting appeal.
