Elly Roberts reviews
Red Hot Chili Peppers: Stadium Arcadium
Distributed by
Warner Brothers
- Cat.no: 9362442222
- Released: May 2006
- Rating: 6/10
- Format: 2-disc CD
Two names: Stadium Arcadium, two CDs: Jupiter / Mars, 28 tracks, over two hours long.
Week commencing May 29th and it's already topped the UK charts for three weeks
in a row.
As we all know a ‘double album’ can be tricky business: Led Zeppelin’s 1975
Physical Graffiti was a massive commercial and critical success. Others
have proverbial filler tracks, such as Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk (1980).
So how have the Chili’s faired?
Firstly, it’s not been rushed, with four years since the brilliant By The Way.
Then there’s the supposed Midas touch of Rick Rubin who re-invented Johnny
Cash and Neil Diamond’s sound. Commentators reckon guitarist John Frusciante’s
hijacked the album by venturing into pro-rock territory, much to Flea’s
consternation, even to the point of quitting the band. After all, it was
Frusciante’s reconnection with the band for 1999’s Californication that
revived their flagging career.
Actually, Flea’s workouts do surface, in particular ultra-funky get down and
boogie Hump de Bump, and steady rolling baselines of C’mon Girl.
Certain elements work, allowing the band to be more expressive (and a bit more
expansive), especially Frusciante’s continuing development.
Overall, they sound more assured than ever, though that might be down to
middle-age.
Predictably, ‘fillers’ do pop up, such as She’s Only 18, Warlocks and
Hey. The acoustic-led Slow Cheetah shows a less edgy side,
plodding carefully with pristine lead vocals and chorus: it’s a classy
break amongst the power-decibels.
Disc 1 highlight deviates from the Chili’s template: Wet Sand possesses
all the elements of a great rock track, gradual crescendo, superb guitar solo,
and not a funky baseline in sight, making it the best constructed song on the album.
Following disc 1’s mellow end, Desecration Smile rolls along complete
with a funky riff, sing-along chorus, and wailing guitar, but its back to a
safe and familiar template, as is the later Storm In A Teacup. The next
five are nothing more than average, broken by a bluesy-Americana gem,
If. Make You Feel Better is a very strong follow-up, guaranteed to
become a concert favourite. Sadly, mediocrity ensues on Animal Bar, So Much
I, We Believe, Turn It Again, finishing on the eventually cacophonous
Death Of A Martian.
Apart from the occasional strong song, and Frusciante’s more subtle guitar
workouts, it lacks By The Way’s magic.
Would it have made a better single album? Most definitely.
The full list of tracks included are :
Review & concert pics copyright © Elly Roberts, 2004-2010.
