the Red Hot Chili Peppers are a band who has brought so many new dimensions, sounds, and feelings to their music, it is impossible to predict what sound the next record will have. this is why after over 20 years, the Peppers are still around today, maybe without the original lineup, but just as much of a family as ever, no matter WHO gets added into the band.
this is their first CD, from 1984. it took me a while to get my hands on, because so few stores carried it. even when i first got it, i was a little weirded out after i put it in my CD player, expecting to hear songs that were similar to the songs on BloodSugarSexMagik, By The Way, or Californication (the only CDs i had heard at that time), and instead heard a quirky mix of 70's funk, bluesy guitar lines, and hip-hop vocal work. it took me about a week to get used to. at first i despised it and wished i had bought BSSM, but after i got used to it, i was VERY glad i had chosen to buy it, and had not bought a different album.
Line-up
Anthony Kiedis- Vocals
Flea- Bass
Cliff Martinez- Drums
Jack Sherman- Guitars
Songs
True Men Dont Kill Coyotes-
the intro starts with a western sounding slap-bass riff by flea, and then the pounding toms of Cliff and the echo-y guitar of Jack kick in. the vocals are very odd, and it almost sounds like anthony is rotating his jaw around, changing the tone of his voice every other word. i like this song a lot, very "out there" and strange. a refreshing break from their current day stuff.
Baby Appeal-
a funky guitar riff kicks this song off. very rappy. anyone who wasnt expecting a hip-hop song will probably be turned off from this. it took me until about a month after i bought this CD to actually enjoy this. now i like this song a great deal.
Buckle Down-
the song goes straight into the verse after a screeching noise at the beginning. a very simple song compared to others, with just a three note main riff, but i find that to be very good, that they can make a song out of three notes, and have it sound better than some 50 note progressive metal riff. by the sound of this song, you can tell its from the mid-80s, with its synchronized shouting of the lyrics, such as "GET THIS!" "HOT! OFF THE ICE!", and the funky, yet poppy, yet rocky melody. one of my favorites off this CD.
Get Up And Jump-
the kind of energitic, fast, funky, loud songs that the chilis were known for early in their career. anthony is rapping like a goofy child, flea is slapping like a madman, Cliff is pounding away at the drums, and Jack is strumming out a loud, scratchy, groovey line. this song captures the chilis' signature sound better than any other song on the album.
Why Dont You Love Me?-
(this song is a Hank Williams cover, i believe) this is a funky little song. i like it a lot, especially the short trumpet breaks in the middle. flea has a simple little bass riff, and the guitar line is high pitched, scratchy and funky. anthony stretches out a lot of syllables and he sounds reminiscent of a cartoon character. definitely a good song.
Green Heaven-
a less goofy, poppy song, this song is slightly darker than the others. the lyrics take a more serious standpoint with a lot of social commentary on police brutality, heroin, greed, rascism, and tension in cities. this song is host to my favorite bass riff on the albums, a slow, groovey slap bass riff, courtesy of flea. my favorite song on this.
Mommy Where's Daddy?-
my least favorite song on this CD. it just sounds dull and dried up. pretty boring to listen to.
Out In L.A.-
another one of those loud, fast, and funky songs. this song features a solo of all the instrumments, although the drum solo is anything but impressive. but overall, this song is very good.
(ok, these last three songs are more of experimental things and just plain goof-offs.)
Police Helicopter-
the same lyrics over and over, "Police helicopter sharkin' through the skyyyyy. Police helicopter landed on my eye.... HUH!" with fast instrummental fills inbetween. not really a song, but a good filler.
You Always Sing The Same-
all this one is, is the instrumments just howling away and Anthony saying "You always sing, you always sing the, you always sing the same!" over and over. its only about 20 seconds long.
Grandpappy Du Plenty-
a great experimental instrummental. the drums in the song are just a bunch of tin scraps, cans, etc. the guitar is full of reverb, and the bass is just filling its role. it almost sounds like something you'd hear in a factory level in an oldschool video game. i love this instrummental.
the are 5 demos on the re-issue, each with the ORIGINAL members on it. Slovak and Irons left the band before the official recording of the CD, but were on the demos. the last demo is an unreleased song.
What it Is (Nina's song)-
this song is just bass and vocals, with poor recording quality. its just flea doing a solid slap line, and anthony rapping along to it. not bad, but the recording quality makes flea's bass sound like a broken engine.
this CD is a MUST buy for any chilis fan. if you are new to the peppers music, i recommend you download a few songs off of the internet first, to see if you like it. i give it a
4/5.
