|
Red
Hot Chili Peppers
June 23, 2002
There have been many imitators, but none can duplicate
the one-of-a-kind sound created by Los Angeles legends
the Red
Hot Chili Peppers. With roots in high school friendships
forged at Fairfax High School, the band has endured
drug addiction and crumbling relationships, as well
as fame and great wealth. RHCP are rock survivors,
and the title track and first single from their eagerly-anticipated
album "By The Way" (due July 9th) is in
the radio.wazee spotlight this week.
 "[The
song is] about a night in the life," frontman
Anthony Kiedis says. "It's a landscape of L.A.
- an evening that happens simultaneously across the
entire city, and the feeling of anticipation and hope
and joy of going out into the fray. Maybe you're going
to meet some magical adventure partner that's going
to warm the cockles of your soul and sing you songs
and hold your hand and take you to places to go dancing.
But it's also about people getting beat up, and drug
deals happening, and prostitution going on, and car
crashes and people playing dice. It's about all of
this stuff happening at the same time." Kiedis
describes it as one of the heavier cuts on the new
disc, which is otherwise sprinkled with less surging,
more melodic fare. Longtime RHCP producer Rick Rubin
is again on board for this latest album, which Kiedis
describes as "rich." "It's going to
spank your ass… in a good way," he says.
The video for "By the Way"
was helmed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, who
directed award-winning clips for Korn ("Freak
on a Leash") and Smashing Pumpkins ("Tonight,
Tonight"). The clip, which guitarist John Frusciante
described as "funny and scary at the same time,"
was influenced by a wild car chase in the Mexican
film "Amores Perros."
RHCP recently took home an ESPN
Action Sports and Music Award for Artist Contribution,
and they’ve also recorded a cover version of the Ramones'
"Havana Affair." It will be featured on
a tribute album due this summer that will also include
Rob Zombie, Green Day, the Offspring and others.
|
