Rolling Stones

Red Hot Chili Peppers
Stadium Arcadium
Out: March 9th

When the Red Hot Chili Peppers convened in September 2004 to begin work on their new album, Stadium Arcadium, the idea
was "to make an old-fashioned Meet the Beatles-like record," says singer Anthony Kiedis. "We set out to write thirteen songs,
make them good and record them -- to have a small, digestible piece of art where people could go, 'Yeah, that's a nice, rocking
jam.' " Kiedis pauses. "It went haywire from there."

Kiedis, bassist Flea, guitarist John Frusciante and drummer Chad Smith actually wrote thirty-eight new songs and recorded
them all with producer Rick Rubin in the same house, in the Hollywood Hills, where they cut 1991's Blood Sugar Sex Magik.
The Chili Peppers were so fired up they wanted to put out the whole racket as a trilogy -- three separate discs, issued in
installments. In the end, Stadium Arcadium, coming out May 9th on Warner Bros., will be an album of more common sense
and size: a double CD of twenty-five tracks.

Maybe. By mid-February, the band was still mixing and agonizing over which outtakes could be squeezed back onto the
album. "A lot of them," says Frusciante. "I could easily give the argument 'This won't make the album any worse. It'll make it
better.' " One song Kiedis believes will "insist to get a place on the record" is "Early 80s," which he says is "like Carole King if
she wrote a song with Crazy Horse in 1971."

That mad variety and verve sum up the entire album, which Flea bluntly calls "by far the best thing we've ever done. We each
have things we do best, and it all got in there." In "C'mon Girl," a Flea-Smith heartbeat-disco rhythm blows up into Kiedis'
warrior-metal vocal chorus, then veers into a torrent of Frusciante feedback and harmonics, his homage to Jimi Hendrix's
waterfall-guitar drama on Electric Ladyland. "Storm in a Teacup" is power-rock hip-hop with what sounds like Little Richard
running wild on piano but is, in fact, Frusciante's pedal-treated guitar. However, that is the real Billy Preston hammering
Seventies-funk clavinet on "Warlocks." Preston has been ill in recent years, but when the band sent him a tape of the track,
"he got out of bed," Flea says, awestruck, "played and got back in bed."

Stadium Arcadium also reprises the hard-pop and ballad strengths of the Chili Peppers' 1999 and 2002 albums Californication
and By the Way, in songs like "Dani California" and "Slow Cheetah," the latter built on a bed of acoustic strum and laced with
Frusciante's singing-wire electric guitar. "John is the movement in the music," says Smith. "Something new gets introduced in
every chorus or verse, whether it's a backing vocal or a guitar part."

Kiedis seconds the compliment: "In the past, John has taken a less-is-more approach, like the jazz guy who is so good that
he can play a couple of notes and it's perfect. But I think he got tired of that. He's heavy, strong and prominent in all of these
songs."

Flea, in turn, cites the dramatic turnaround in Kiedis' singing, a concentrated power and tonal focus that Flea admits was not
there when he and Kiedis co-founded the Chili Peppers in 1983: "Anthony rapped and yelled and had a unique aesthetic of how
lyrics go, but he couldn't sing. When he did a melodic song live, he would tense up. It was difficult for him in a scene where so
many guys are great natural singers." But in recent years and especially on Stadium Arcadium, Flea says proudly, "Anthony
is bending notes, being flexible with melody, rather than holding on to it for dear life. He's expressing his emotions."

The emotions are real. Several songs on Stadium Arcadium specifically refer to commitment; in "Hard to Concentrate," Kiedis
paraphrases the marriage vows ("Do you agree to take this man/ Into your world?"). "During the writing," he explains,
"everybody in the band had fallen in love. It's probably the first time we had all fallen in love within the same few months of each
other. I was just tapping into that energy, particularly watching Flea get deeper into a commitment with his girlfriend." They
recently had a baby daughter, while Smith and his wife have an eleven-month-old son. Kiedis, ironically, is in limbo: "My
relationship at the moment is not where I dreamed it would be. But I have discovered that I have a capacity for commitment
beyond anything I've had in the past."

In the meantime, Kiedis is anxious to take the new songs on tour. "We wrote 'em, we've listened to them," he says, "but we
haven't given them a life onstage. We're going to do that for the next year" -- once they finish the mixing.

"My son was born the weekend we started recording," says Smith, laughing. "And he's almost walking. Anthony's like, 'Yeah,
he'll be tour-managing us by the time this thing comes out.' "(DAVID FRICKE)

Kerrang!

Your last album 'By The Way', came out in 2002. Why has this one taken you so long?
'The workload was a lot more intense because we wrote so many songs [38 to be exact] and recorded them all. we definately
had our work cut out and there certainly hasnt been much instant gratification with this one.'

'Stadium Arcadium' is a double album. has it got a concept tying it all together?
'Its definately a body of work that fits together very naturally. its all related in that each song has an effect on the other songs
but we havent divided it into catagories or anything like that. its more like weve put all the songs into a bag, cahken them up,
tipped ir upside down adn seen how they have all landed.'

What does 'Stadium Arcadium' mean?
'Stadium Arcadium' is the name of a song on the record and it feels good as the title because the chourus of that song is
talking about the celestial feel from where we are - where we are in life and where we are as musicians - and people that try to
generate good feelinga adn the act of just trying to reflect that beauty.'

Are the new songs all focused around 'generating good feelings' then?
'theres no specific themes, really. theres a lot of that celebrates dysfunction and tghe good things that come you get out of
going through dysfunctional, difficult situiations and acceptance of that and finding beauty in those situations. ive been dealing
with whatever the hell came into my mind, really! i just started writting and its sort of a stream of consciousness - or
unconsciousness - type thing.'

So its triumph in the face of adversity - type stuff?
'I played the songs to someone the other day that said 'This is your gospel record' and that had never crossed my mind, but he
seemd to think that there were a lot of gospel references in the lyrics. im far from an expert on the bible, but it was interesting
that he got that from listening to the songs. i think its nicer to instigate an idea that makes people think and let them take
away their own ideas and understandings.'

What song will surprise fans the most
'Theres a song called 'Hey' that i think will take everybody by surprise. its so sophosticated sounding in its mellowness that it
will stand out to the casualk ear. its difficult to describe, but its very infectious.'

only 25 songs out of the 38 recorded will make the album. What are you going to do with the rest?
'We had a military burial for them. No, we havent really. were going to keep them adn try to find any way possible to get them
out there. i believe that theyre as good as the songs that made the record, it just wasnt the ritgh time for them.'

'Stadium Arcadium' is out on May 8 on Warners

"MUSIC FOR THE DIVINE": IL NUOVO ALBUM DI GLENN HUGHES

Chad and Glenn Hughes will release their new album titled "Music For The Divine" @ the second week of June. This is a follow up to Soul Mover, which was released last year.

Hughes recorded his new solo CD with the aid of RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS drummer Chad Smith (who is also producing the CD) and RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS guitarist John Frusciante. Songtitles set to appear on the album include "Oil and Water", "Frail", "Black Light", "Stepping On" and "The Valiant Denial". Also playing on the set is guitarist J.J. Marsh, who has appeared on Hughes' last several solo releases.

Thanks to Theresa @ allchadsmith.com.

According to GHPG.net, legendary vocalist/bassist Glenn Hughes has set "Music for the Divine" as the title of his new solo album, tentatively due in June.

Commented Hughes: "The title is very important to me. When you hear the music, you'll understand the meaning. The title speaks to me, as all the previous ones have. Divine is goodness and is a statement to the fans that really understand my music.

"The album has deep lyrical and spiritual meaning and once again is where I'm at, at the present time. I do not wish to tread into the past and so this album is a major step forward to me. This is my most honest and artistic album. I am very glad to know that things have continued to grow along spiritual lines.

"Because of the amazing changes in my life, that have happened since 'Soul Mover', it has given me a creative output and encouragement to make this new album. When I was growing up in England, my favourite bands & artists were always growing and morphing and continually reinventing themselves and this CD, I believe, has captured all of those elements."

Hughes recorded his new solo CD with the aid of RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS drummer Chad Smith (who is also producing the CD) and RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS guitarist John Frusciante. Songtitles set to appear on the album include "Oil and Water", "Frail", "Black Light", "Stepping On" and "The Valiant Denial". Also playing on the set is guitarist J.J. Marsh, who has appeared on Hughes' last several solo releases.

Blender Magazine

In the new Blender magazine out right now, with Dave Chappelle on the cover, there is a small article on the new album, accompanied with the photo of Flea playing the piano shirtless. It doesn't say alot, but heres what I remember:
They originally wanted to release three albums six months apart,
but Flea said that would be terrible business.
Flea says the song "Hey" has a very Marvin Gaye feel to it.
He said that in order to relax during recording he would either play basketball or smoke pot with John! Quite interesting and I guess it settles the debate as to whether John still smokes pot.
He said John wanted a Wu-Tang beat for Danni California.
Flea doesn't know what the title Stadium Arcadium means and that Anthony came up with it.
That's all I can remember, but it was a very short article, just thought people would want a head's up.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Their Double Album - The First Listen

RHCP are already a hugely established band, they have reached many milestones in their careers. And since John Frusciante returned to the fold the band have come even more successful and even closer personally. Their last album "By The Way" is finally being follwed... by a double album cryptically named "Stadium Arcadium"
At the session in LA we listened to 21 of the 25 tracks and were also given a background to the writing and recording process. It was a great introduction to the collection of songs. The first thing you notice is that the RHCP's constantly evolving sound has had some dramatic changes since their last outing.
The feel of the BTW era (Beach Boys arrangements & lots opf harmonies) is barely recogniseable. Singer Anthony Kiedis explains: "John gave me an Electric Light Orchestra CD to listen to, we weren't sure which direction to go in - symphonic or spartan - so we both decided. And their directional ideas shine through.
"Stadium Arcadium" sees John Fruciante take on a bigger role in the songwriting process with more visible guitars solos, which you couldn't hear in BTW.
The first single "Dani California" also echoes the new style - It's a classic Hit! Like nothing your ears have ever heard before. And when the album is released in May you should sit alone in peace with these 25 songs, then one can be certain... "Stadium Arcadium" is big. "Stadium Arcadium" is brilliant!

Translated By Chris Higgins