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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Sixty Warm Minutes, December 15, 2000
I was excited when I first heard that Dave Navarro was joining the Chili Peppers. It seemed like a dream-team fusion of two of my favourite bands. I hoped that this new entity would be 3/4 Chili and 1/4 Jane. Unfortunately what surfaced was more 3/4 Jane and 1/4 Chili. Now, this compound was wonderful when Flea joined Perry, Dave, and Stephen for a late-'90's Jane's reunion. His funky bass was a great addition to that mix. But it doesn't work here, for several reasons.First, the Chili rhythm section is wasted as a quasi-metal outfit. Jane's was great at that, deconstructing the power-chord to the point where it resembled art. But Flea and (drummer) Chad Smith, while occasionally high energy and hard hitting, are at their best in plush polyrhythms. Former (and now current) guitarist John Frusciante fit in perfectly in this regard. But Navarro, a great textural guitarist, is not usually counted on to carry a groove ("Stop!" notwithstanding). I should have known trouble was a-brewing when in pre-release publicity interviews, Dave professed a profound distaste for funk. Oh no! He does give it the old college try. Listen to his laid back staccato rhythms on "Aeroplane", or the jazzy wah-wah work in the addictive "Walkabout". But for the rest of the record, he just doesn't seem willing to try any more of these compromises. Second, Anthony Kiedis is no Perry Farrell. That's not a slight, mind you. Anthony does what he does better than anyone else. He can deliver simple soulful singing on one song, and credible party rapping on others. But he doesn't have the vocal chops to do what Perry Farrell does. Perry's voice is an ethereal instrument, and his melodic phrasing is always unexpected. Anthony tries to emulate those qualities here ("Warped", "Deep Kick", "Shallow Be Thy Game"), but it's just not in him. This even leaks into the songs of conventional melody. There are specific points in both "Tearjerker" and "Transcending" where he's unsure of how to phrase his lyrics. He seems uncomfortable throughout the whole record. There are some great moments here, though. "Aeroplane" is an ecstatic song, held together by a wicked Flea groove. The acoustic guitar from 'BloodSugarSexMagik's "Breaking the Girl" makes a welcome return on "My Friends". "Tearjerker" is a touching profession of love (to Kurt Cobain, I believe). As I said before, "Walkabout" is an interesting, funky workout for all involved. It's probably my favourite track here. And "Transcending" is mostly beautiful. It begins with a spiraling bass line, and has some nice overlapping vocals in the middle section. But it breaks down during the coda; an off-putting right turn into metal riffing. I love the Chilis. I'm glad John is back with the band. I now know that the Dave experiment was a tad misguided, a case of friends not meshing musically. However, I do enjoy most of this album. If anything, it's an interesting experiment. One that produces some fine moments, but others that just don't work.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Weird Detour from RHCP, November 16, 2006
Ragging on this album just because of Dave Navarro's presence is unwarranted. Face it: The Chili Peppers have seen various different guitarists in their albums, and each compliments Flea's bass and Kiedis' vocals in a suitable manner. Navarro just happened to be heavier.
This album IS, in my a opinion, a strange detour from the line of continuity that the Chili Peppers had been following. The first album was patchy funk affair nurtured under the hollow production imposed by GoF's Andy Gill. The second album saw a lazy, fun sort of funk come to the fore under the auspices of George Clinton. With "The Uplift Mofo Party Plan," there was a move towards trebly funk rock. 1989's "Mother's Milk" was a great blend of powerful funk rhythms and massive guitar overdubs. The sound was rather balanced by the sheer intensity of it all, and the production made it all enjoyable. The next album, "Blood Sugar Sex Magik," brough the production back to a more stable level. It was here where the care-free funk and the unique guitar work were allowed to flourish in their own manner. And the results were great.
But "One Hot Minute" sees the production values take an abrupt dark shift. The general atmosphere of the album is one of hazy psychedelia meshed with overly dark sensibilities. Songs like Warped, Deep Kick and the title track best exhibit this foray into the dark side. The psychedelia comes to the fore on both the funky numbers (Walkabout, Falling into Grace) and poppier tracks like Airplane. Both of these types of songs inhabit a barely lucid realm that's totally different from the band-in-a-room sound on the previous album. Sometimes, the darkness and the psych can both manifest themselves within the confines of a particular song. All of this can be rather unsettling for those accustomed to a funky, happy-go-lucky sort of juvenile sound.
The songs themselves are much more difficult to swallow than the tracks on previous albums. Those albums had a lot of filler and throwaway tracks, while all of BSSM could be enjoyably absorbed in a single sitting. With "One Hot Minute," however, the overbearing heavyness makes it hard to listen to the album over and over. Navarro's guitar sound is just too heavy in many ways, and it drowns our Flea's characteristic bass in many instances. The vocals on the tracks rely more on attitude than content (as always with Kiedis), but there's a certain straightforward approach here that stands in contrast with the more playful mannerisms of previous album. The various songs can be instantly catchy or tough to assimiliate, but very few are actually terrible. For instance, the title track descents into unnecessary repetition which just hurts its value in the end. But, for the most part, the tracks are all quite solid in their own right.
This album seems to head down a direction that defies the route that the Chili Peppers seemed to have been following. The production and the songs, coupled with the heavier guitar sound and vocal approach, made it tough to stomach this piece of work. In retrospect, however, it manages to stand on its own quite well. It's not a dud; it's just an odd digression that will take some time to reconcile and appreciate.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome CD!, June 10, 2005
A Kid's Review
This is a very good CD and I was suggest it for those who have recently discovered Red Hot Chili Peppers. Warning to those who don't like the "funky style of RCHP": this is one of their "modern rock" albums like Californication, By The Way, etc.
Warped 4.5/5
Nice Intro! It starts out sort of quiet and then turns into real rock.
Aeroplane 5/5
Now this is a genius song! It's probably even the best one on the album! I love it, it's about romance and mixed feelings of love and attraction.
Deep Kick 4/5
This one is okay it's a little weird. I wouldn't suggest listening to this one first if it's your first time listening to the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
My Friends 5/5
This one was on Greatest Hits, so I definitely suggest it! It is also one of MY FAVORITE RCHP songs! Check it out! This is definitely for the Red Hot Chili Peppers' fans!
Coffee Shop 5/5
This is a nice rock song! All the way through, there is nice groove! It is the best and I suggest it for YOU, whoever you are.
Pea 4.5/5
Ha ha! This one is very funny! It's only about 1 minute and forty-seven seconds long, but it's still a great song.
One Big Mob 4/5
OBM is a weird song, but I like it pretty much. Around the middle of the song, you hear the baby of a member of Jane Addiction's cry. The member of JA plays guitar in this song.
Walkabout 5/5
Ha! This one is awesome! Nice rock piece!
Tearjerker 4.5/5
A very epic song of tragedy. I listen to this one not as much as Aeroplane but it is pretty good.
One Hot Minute 5/5
Now we're talkin' on this one! A very great story about a guy recieving his first kiss.
Falling Into Grace 3.5/5
I don't listen to this one very much, and I've heard that it's not good. I wouldn't suggest it for just anyone.
Shallow Be Thy Game 5/5
Oh yeah! We're talking about rock in this song! Great for a party (and so is Coffee Shop...)
Transcending 4.5/5
This one is very good, it's makes a nice outro. I don't think it's the best in fact, but all I can say is that the Red Hot Chili Peppers' One Hot Minute is great!!!
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