You can’t talk about American rock music without mentioning the Red Hot Chili Peppers. The band has won every major award in the business and has even cemented their place in rock and roll history with a face-melting performance at their induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame back in 2012. Indeed, the band’s signature brand of funk has won over millions of fans over their 37-year career.
This is why fans were disheartened when founding member and lead guitarist left the group back in 2009. And while the band continued to make great music, even managing to release the albums I’m With You and The Getaway, Frusciante’s absence left a void that would seemingly never be filled. However, this all changed when Frusciante returned to the band in December 2019 replacing Josh Klinghoffer.
If Frusciante’s return isn’t enough to get fans excited, he has also recently talked about the developments regarding the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ next album. Read on for more information on the group’s latest album and what we can expect from it!
In the Works Since 2018
The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ new album has been in the works since 2018, with the group initially eyeing 2019 for its release. However, certain things got in the way as the band experienced several setbacks that delayed both the recording process and the album’s release. However, this seemed to work out in hindsight as it allowed Frusciante to have a bigger impact on the record. In an interview with Loudwire, The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ drummer Chad Smith details how they were focused on writing new material with Frusciante along with lining up more festival appearances down the line.
Frusciante’s involvement with the album could have major implications. If you’ve been keeping up with the group since his departure, you’re sure to have noticed a change in the band’s sound. The group’s bassist Flea openly talked about how easy it is to dance to the music on their album The Getaway is. And while this isn’t a bad thing, it’s safe to assume that the new album will contain elements of the pre-2010 Red Hot Chili Peppers sound.
What to Expect
Given Frusciante’s involvement, what can fans expect from this new record? While the band has been pretty quiet about this latest album, Frusciante is sure to bring his unique brand of rock back into the mix. He achieves this through his mastery of the technical aspects of guitar playing, which is evident even in the earliest of Red Hot Chili Peppers’ tracks. In 1999’s Around the World, Frusciante’s combined use of the Boss DS-2’s distortion effects and a wah pedal continues to make a solid case for how metal guitar sounds can be remixed into funk. We hear a similar instance of Frusciante’s impeccable proficiency on the track Snow (Hey Oh) from 2006’s Stadium Arcadium. In this track, Frusciante gets the most out of his Electro-Harmonix POG to make his guitar emulate the sound of an organ.
While the band has been quite tight-lipped about the specifics of the new album, we do know that they are scrapping the material that they had when Josh Klinghoffer was still in the band in favor of working on new stuff with Frusciante. Whatever they come up with, a world with a new Red Hot Chili Peppers album in it is a world that’s better off.
