Introducing...

The Red Hot Chili Peppers! In order to complete the triad of one of the best shows on the road from the early 1990s, the Chili Peppers will now be honored. If you'll think back to last week, you may remember that I chatted about the Smashing Pumpkins for NRT. Well, that same day, over at the NRT Annex, Dwardisimo Rex gave homage to another one of my favorite bands - Pearl Jam. In the early 1990s, the Chili Peppers headlined a show that traveled around this great nation and introduced us to both the Pumpkins and Pearl Jam - little known bands at the time. Most of us who went to the show were there for the Chili Peppers; but came away with so much more.

Now, before I get into their first new album in four years (!) I would like to give you a little back history. I was introduced to the Chili Peppers in early 1990. My friend Meghan decided that I needed more to my musical catalog than REM and Metallica, so she gave me a mixed tape full of the newly crazed 'alternative' music. On it was a copy of Catholic School Girls Rule from the 1985 album Freaky Styley. That's when my love affair with the Chili Peppers began. For all practical purposes, this band and I grew up together. I was in high school, they wore only tube socks on stage. I went to college, they still wore only tube socks on stage. I went to grad school, and they began to don tighty whities. I went into the real world, and they all discovered pants. Now I'm a full fledged 'adult' and they dress in full. As time went by, we all gained some new friends, lost some old ones, grew up, cleaned up, and discovered that there was just a little bit more to life than sex, drugs, and rock 'n roll. Their music has changed some, but still has that funky groove feeling of the older stuff - with just a little more maturity.

So now, I present, Stadium Arcadium!

Released back in early May, this double disc is 122 minutes of pure joy. Sure, they're singing about California again; but it's deeper this time, more intense. These guys are no longer just a band; they have officially become musicians. Anthony Kiedis's voice remains smooth as silk while his vocal croonings trade banter with Flea's bass. They've given John Frusciante more opportunity to strut his stuff, and if you didn't know already, you now know that this guy is DAMN good with his six string. And last, but certainly not least, drummer Chad Smith, as always, continues to perfect what he does so very very well - combine high powered rock rhythms with blistering funk grooves. Chad, my man, you ROCK.

You'll find the first single - the very catchy Dani California - under the ear candy link; but I would also like you to delight in the title track, Stadium Arcadium. It's a lovely ballad that displays the talents of all the band's members. And if you listen closely, you'll find that they have layered the track to perfection. Sit back, relax, and let the Chili Peppers take you to the moon...