Red Hot Chili Peppers – “I’m With You” Review

As a massive Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, I cannot guarantee that this LP will be reviewed in a totally impartial way. This doesn’t mean that my judgement of it will be biased per sé. Well, it does, but bias is inevitable and unavoidable. What I mean to say is that I shall come to my conclusions in a fair and valid way – it’s just that my opinions on various songs, be it on “I’m With You” or other songs from the Chilis’ back catalogue may be referred to in a less formal manner. I think I know what I’m trying to say here, so just pretend that you do too and everything will be fine.

By the way, is this a good time boys, or has their fortune faded?

So here we are. This has been 5 and a half years in the making now, which makes it all the more surprising that the hype and speculation surrounding the release of this album has been lukewarm at best for the Californian punk-funk rockers. Perhaps there’s an undercurrent of apprehension present, due to band members’ rapidly increasing ages. Bar one member, that is. And perhaps it is he who bears most of the reason for the lacking public anticipation. More accurately, it is he whose shoes he is filling in the band who could be the cause for mild concern over this latest RHCP album rather than the other members’ quickly advancing years. 2 years ago, in 2009, guitarist John Frusciante left the band for the second time. Over the years he’s arguably been the band’s most integral influence – in song-writing and performing. Frusciante’s replacement comes in the form of Josh Klinghoffer; a man whose playing style may be different and whose relative youth may seem worrying. However, he’s a very familiar figure with the Chilis, having teamed up with them for the Stadium Arcadium Tour, and he’s more experienced than many may have thought; his projects ranging from working with PJ Harvey to Beck, to Gnarls Barkley and even his predecessor John Frusciante’s prolific solo career.Up until now the Red Hot Chili Peppers have stood the test of time very well indeed. Their debut came way back in 1984, but now, 27 years forward in 2011, do they still have what it takes to stay sounding fresh and musically relevant, or should the funky monks retire and head back to the monastery for comfort and shelter?

The album opens in fine spirits with the upbeat, grooving, marching, Monarchy Of Roses. It begins with a watery-distorted vocal verse, which is almost Warped-esque; and you’d expect it to go pretty heavy from here on in. Does that happen? Nope. Bam, in comes the swirling disco funk. Just when you’ve got into the groove, out it goes and back in comes the stompy, distorted verse. You know what’s about to come next. Bam, in comes the swirling disco funk for round two. The guitar work towards the end of the track is pretty encouraging, when you re-realise that Frusciante is absent. In fact, here it sounds almost Dave Navarro/One Hot Minute-esque. The backing vocals are ever so average though, and so the longing for Frusciante’s return nearly creeps upon us within the first 5 minutes of this record. Luckily though, it likely won’t, ‘cause Monarchy Of Roses is excellent. It’s one of the best songs on the album, and a perfect way to set the ball rolling. The Red Hot Chili Peppers are back. 8/10

Do you find yourself wondering how good the bass is on I’m With You? Do you? Your answer is found in Factory Of Faith, so go go go, listen to it! NOW! Come back to this point of the review when you’re done. You don’t need to, by the way. This track opens with a cheeky little jumpy-bass riff, and it never looks back. The drum beat is simple as hell, but it allows the bass to come to the forefront, with Anthony Kiedis singing and rapping along to make this little ditty Typhoid-level infectious. To close the song is a neat little mechanical guitar solo, which is perhaps some of the most subtly effective guitar playing on the album. Thankfully it (the song itself) doesn’t overstay its welcome, therefore ensuring that you’ll come back to this track several more times for another fix. 7/10

Quality-wise, I’m With You doesn’t hold back at all with its opening few tracks. Brendan’s Death Song received much coverage prior to the album’s release, without the general public being able to even listen to the song. Q Magazine, in an preview of I’m With You, described it as the best new song from the Chili Peppers. I can see why. It’s an ode to Brendan Mullen, the founder of a small punk-rock club in the ‘80s – who later died in 2009 after suffering a stroke. It seems that when Anthony Kiedis can find something of emotional importance to attach to one of his songs, he becomes a totally different lyricist. By this I mean he becomes a half-decent lyricist at the very least. After the funkiness of the two tracks prior to Brendan’s Death Song, it’s actually quite refreshing to have a song that toys with themes of life and death; and this refreshment is only heightened by the fact that this song is probably the best to be found on the whole of I’m With You. Kiedis sings it with feeling, without going overboard, Chad Smith’s drumming is measured to begin with, before becoming more active after the halfway mark. Klinghoffer plays his part fine as well… I love the way the song in essence never changes too much – the build-up is exceptional, hitting a frantic peak and then softly floating back down to Earth. “Like I said, you know I’m almost dead, you know I’m almost gone” are the repeatedly chanted words from Kiedis. Brendan’s Death Song is an out of body experience for the Chili Peppers. A beautiful one, at that. 9/10

Ethiopa’s up next, a track clearly influenced by the band’s trip out to Africa – funded by none other than Damon Albarn of Blur and Gorillaz fame. “We’re rolling everybody. It starts with bass” points out Flea, to kick the track off. Mmm, we love a bit of the bass. It’s said to be Chad Smith’s favourite song from the album, due to its unrivalled ability to make him smile. Smiling is a good thing by the way, and Ethiopa certainly does have the ability to raise a hearty smile on the face of the listener. It’s a great little feel-good track for both the listener and the members of the band themselves – despite being “lost in Ethiopia”, Kiedis and co are clearly having a good time. Unfortunately, this song is one of a few where the guitar parts are utterly unremarkable. It isn’t bad on the whole, but yet another low-skill solo feels cheap and makes me want to wail like a small child who’s desperate to have his own way. ‘His own way’, is the return of John Frusciante. Nevertheless, yet again this is some great music. 7/10 

Some may mistakenly feel as though they’re listening to something from the By The Way sessions with this next song. Unfortunately, it’s more akin to a B-side from their hit 2001 album than anything else. I’m With You seems to seriously lack a big-hitter; a song that jumps out and sticks in the memory in the same way as Can’t Stop, for example. Annie Wants A Baby doesn’t change that. As perfectly pleasant and musically sound as this song is, it doesn’t really do anything. I like it, sure, but that’s not really the point. Yet again the lyrics are absolute tripe too. As for the guitar solo, if you dare class it as one? Klinghoffer lacks the passion, skill and enthusiasm of Frusciante. Snoozefest. 5/10

The volume, the pace and the bass picks up again with Look Around. It’s quite reminiscent of Californication’s Purple Stain and Stadium Arcadium’s 21st Century. Sound good to you? Be careful. The familiarity of this song may be its downfall. Again, there’s nothing necessarily wrong with this track, but I can’t help but feel as though I’d be more impressed had I not been feeling any shades of déjà vu. I guess I just expect better from the Red Hot Chili Peppers. At times, especially towards the end, it begins to feel like self-parody. For a band that’s never taken themselves too seriously, this isn’t such a bad thing – but it’s a bad thing nonetheless. For all its energy, Look Around is actually quite dull. Another song that sounds more like a B-side; this time probably from Stadium Arcadium. 5/10

Ah yes, the lead single; The Adventures Of Raindance Maggie. Chances are you’ve heard this song several times by now. Given shed-loads of radio airplay despite barely even scratching the surface of the charts worldwide, its sales performance has been hugely disappointing. This may be down to the fact that it leaked several days early, or simply due to a lack of promotion and advertising. Who knows? I’ll be one of the first people to admit that this song isn’t exactly what the fans were hoping for in a comeback single from one of the biggest bands in the world, but I don’t want to criticise it. I can’t criticise it, you see. Why’s that? I guess I just really like the song… No, it’s not just that I like the song a lot; I genuinely do believe it’s a great song, and to be honest I am surprised that it didn’t do as well as expected. It’s one of the catchiest tunes the Chilis have ever produced, right the way through from the solid bass to the boppity beat, to the motherfucking cowbell. Lyrically it’s par for the course really - “Tugboat Sheila is into memorabilia” pretty much tells you all you need to know about not just Raindance Maggie, but the entirety of the album. There's a mini guitar solo too, but in essence it adds nothing to the song - if anything it takes away, drenching the song in noise. As far as rock music goes, this is about as tame as they come, but anybody hoping for anything particularly heavy or X-rated was clearly looking at the wrong end of the band’s career. “Cock-blocking isn’t allowed” is as rude as it gets, my dear. Great, immediate, solid single. The official video for the song is pretty cool too. 8/10

Tasked with firmly getting I’m With You back on track is Did I Let You Know (This I Know). Me being the massive pedant I am, it strikes me that a little question mark would have done a hell of a lot of good for the song title, but I shall move on. The feel-good atmosphere flows all the way back, in a similar way in which Ethiopia does a few tracks earlier. It seems that the African vibe suits the new look Red Hot Chili Peppers more so than attempting to hark back to their style of old. Flea brings out his trumpet for a brief but brilliant solo, and the tribal percussion used throughout the song really is rather fantastic. There’s one thing I’m curious about on this song, and that’s the backing vocals during the chorus. I can’t for the life of me figure out who it is singing it…I’ve assumed it’s Klinghoffer, but it sounds more like there may be a hidden female member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers somewhere. Part of me is very tempted to give this track top marks for rhyming ‘cheeky’ with ‘Mozambiquey’ but I’ll try to stay at least moderately sensible for the remainder of this review. 8/10

Oh dear. Just when we thought I’m With You was back on track, and slotting into a nice little groove, the pace, volume and bass picks up one more time to do its very best to flood the album with predictable mediocrity. In truth, Goodbye Hooray’s chorus is just plain bad. In partnership with Look Around, there’s a decent slice of self-parody to be found on the record. I’m hoping it was deliberate, but we all know it’s not. Again, you’d be well inclined to expect this song to have been a B-side, but it’s somehow crept its way onto the final cut. There’s really not very much to say about this track. Its one redeeming moment is found in a quick breakdown, which is tranquil and chilled-out enough to just about give me the required strength to tolerate one final run-through of the chorus. Blergh. 5/10

Time for a frolic. Happiness Loves Company is probably the brightest, happiest song I’ve ever heard the Red Hot Chili Peppers dare to record. It bounces along with primary colour promise. This is all well and good the first couple of times you hear it, but I challenge you to listen to it more than 5 times and not find yourself either cringing or simply reaching for the skip button. The story’s getting a little bit samey now, because no, this song isn’t bad. It’s all musically good, but it’s absolutely 100% nothing special. I honestly thought Happiness Loves Company was going to go a little bit ragtime on my arse, but (probably) thankfully it doesn’t. 6/10

Softly enters Police Station, the second of I’m With You’s two tracks that actually make the slightest bit of sense. This is a piano ballad; and before you yawn, let me tell you that this is one of the best songs on the album. In fact, this and Brendan’s Death Song, the only songs with stories to tell, are easily distinguishable as the greatest moments on I’m With You. The verses are ever so laid back, with Klinghoffer’s backing vocals both soothing and haunting at the same time. The chorus then erupts in grandiose fashion, and it makes one wonder why the band never attempted the piano ballad until this late stage in their career. Kiedis’s vocal delivery is heartfelt and sweet when it needs to be, but then suitably powerful the next. He’s sounding bloody excellent on this record. According to him, Police Station is about the history of the LA police department since the turn of the century, including their abuse of power and their views on hip-hop culture. Hearing that man speak even the slightest shred of sense is arguably more like music to my ears than any of what can be found on I’m With You. Please note that this is not a dig at the album, but instead a comment on how consistently ridiculously poor RHCP’s lyrics have been since they formed. However, it's also apparently about the fading of a Hollywood star. Maybe it's down to us to decide? Maybe Kiedis doesn't actually know what he's talking (singing) about... Anyway, this song is fantastic. 9/10

The piano stays onstage for Even You Brutus?, a jangling, bouncing, rocking song that oozes pure theatre. Quite fitting then, that it’s onstage where the piano stays, along with the band members themselves. Admittedly, my choice of words there was pure luck and not through deliberate choice. It opens with the now pretty tired formula of rapped nonsense (much like the ending of Stadium Arcadium’s Death of a Martian), but when he sings, you know that Kiedis still has the right to keep going with what he does best if there were ever any doubts raised as to whether he was past his sell by date. Here he roars/screams/wails/yelps/shrieks like a cat, which as stupid as it sounds, actually works really well indeed. The chorus is pompous, catchy, and more grandiose than anything you’ll find on I’m With You. Of all the tracks on the album, Even You Brutus is the one which is most desperately calling for a wicked guitar solo. It never comes though, and the song ends rather abruptly. A sing-a-long classic. 8/10

Meet Me At The Corner is a little bit of a low-laying number, and it’s a little bit lovely too. It’s likely to drift by without you even realising, so it’s definitely deserving of multiple listens. Klinghoffer’s backing vocals return here, and once again his style is going to take some getting used to. I should probably add that his main part early on in the song sounds eerily like MGMT. Just warning you. While on the subject of Klinghoffer, he plays a neat little guitar outro which literally stops the very moment it gets going. It’s actually a little bit frustrating, because I was really hoping he could give himself a chance to shine. Musically basic, but atmospherically thick, Meet Me At The Corner has a small role to play late on in the album, and it makes sure that diversity is maintained on the album without the overall cohesion ever being questioned. Some may class it as filler, but it’s too pleasant to be a waste of space. This song is like glue; glue that tastes pretty nice too. 7/10

And so here we are; the final track. Are we in for an emotional closer, à la Venice Queen? Simply put, no, absolutely not. I’m still not really sure what to make of Dance, Dance, Dance. It sounds like a nice way to close the enjoyable party that I’m With You has been, with the African vibe returning once again, but for me there’s one flaw… Unfortunately, this flaw is in the track’s title itself, when being sung. It’s slightly out of Kiedis’s comfortable reach, thus making it awkward and uncomfortable for the listener. I know I’m not the only one who believes this to be true. Ultimately, Dance, Dance, Dance is a tad forgettable. 6/10

The track-by-track section of the review was supposed to be quick and to the point…whoops. Let's see how concise the conclusion is, eh?

Artwork courtesy of Damien Hirst. Nice.

I’m With You is a progression in sound for the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Many elements of their past remain, but the influence of pop and piano are more prominent than ever. Quality-wise what’s on offer is relatively inconsistent, but stylistically it all holds together very well for a cohesive listening experience. Dealing with a change of line-up is never easy for any band, but thankfully, this is no train-wreck of an album; not at all. That said, it’d be ignorant to claim that John Frusciante’s absence isn’t noticeable. In stepped Klinghoffer to say “I’m With You”, but ironically, it couldn’t be further from the truth. Josh’s guitar work is bland. This is perhaps more down to the iffy mixing rather than his technical playing, I’m not sure. He’s competent when called upon, but (a) he’s not exactly called upon to do much anyway, and (b) he often sounds distant and drowned out by 3 more experienced, proficient musicians. You want solos? Think again. You want riffs? Think again. Seriously. In actuality, Josh Klinghoffer remains the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ backup guitarist – because Frusciante’s true replacement is just Flea. Having learned music theory and the piano, there’s more plink-plonking (particularly in the album’s second half) and prominent bass playing (particularly in the album’s first half) on I’m With You than there is much in the way of conventional guitar strumming. It’s a huge shame and it’s a downer that really does threaten to bring the album down a notch. One of the fans’ fears prior to the release of this massively anticipated record has indeed become a reality. Frusciante is clearly dearly missed. This unfortunate truth doesn’t ruin the experience though. Large steps have been made towards finding a style that suits the Chili Peppers right now, and I have my utmost faith and confidence in that fact that come the next album (whenever that may be), the Red Hots will be in fine form, as comfortable as ever and crucially able to deliver the killer track or two that I’m With You hasn’t been able to. There’s a lot of fun to be had on I’m With You, and so recommending it is easy. Its imperfections are confidently outbalanced by moments of brilliance. You know what to do now – buy it.

7/10
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