Videos, photos, interviews and more…

There are still lots of things emerging about the new Red Hot Chili Peppers’ album and from the promotional interviews that RHCP did to promote I’m With You a couple of weeks ago as monthly publications are released, etc. This is a round up of the latest (there will be a separate post for Q Magazine’s article as the edition features some other things too):

Clara Balzary (Flea’s daughter in case you didn’t know!) is the official photographer for RHCP’s promotional photos for I’m With You and several more of her photographs have been released this week; some are of the whole band and a couple are of Josh Klinghoffer alone:

Many thanks to Altair at RHCP Brazil for sharing the RHCP photos with us and also to the person (sorry I’ve forgotten who it was; please shout up and I’ll credit you) for linking me to the Clara photos.

Spinner (UK) RHCP Flea Interview

Spinner ran an interview with Flea about I’m With You and the new line up in Flea where he admits that it wasn’t only John Frusciante who doubted his role in the band, but that he too, considered quitting the Red Hot Chili Peppers:

The Red Hot Chili Peppers return this August with ‘I’m With You,’ the band’s first new collection since 2006’s double album, ‘Stadium Arcadium.’ During the hiatus, the band lost guitarist John Frusciante, who’s been replaced by Josh Klinghoffer. But as bassist Flea tells Spinner, Frusciante wasn’t the only one who had doubts about going on.

 

 

 

“I just felt like I wanted to take two years away just to really look and see if the band was something we should still be doing,” the bassist says. The fact the band is back with a new Rick Rubin-produced collection answers the question of whether or not he thought it was worth continuing. In this very honest interview, Flea opens up on how his relationship with frontman Anthony Kiedis helped save the band, the change in guitarists and the new album.

We talked to Anthony during the making of the last album and he said it was such an intense experience and you guys recorded so much music, but it’s been five years. Did that time reinvigorate you for the making of ‘I’m With You’?

Very much so. The record was more than intense and the tour even more intense. We toured for a year and a half on that record and at the end of it, it was just time. I said, “Let’s take two years off.” And I talked everyone into it and some people were more prone to it than others, but it just felt like we needed to stop. We’ve been going really hard for a lot of years with small breaks here and there, but never a major break. And I just felt like I wanted to take two years away just to really look and see if the band was something we should still be doing.

Things had gotten dysfunctional and not fun, even though I thought we were making great records, doing great shows and were a really powerful, mighty thing as a band. I was proud of what we did. I thought we honored our position in the rock world. I felt like we always gave our hearts, but we just needed to get away from it. And having that time off for me was outstanding. I went to USC for a year, studied music and grew a lot as a musician, getting more tools as a musician. I did projects with other people who I really respect and admire, I traveled great places. And coming back, I just felt like I wanted to do it, like, “Let’s f—ing make this happen, let’s make an awesome record.” And that’s what we did. I’m really happy with the whole experience. Everything went just right.

Jane’s Addiction have said a lot of their issues have fallen by the wayside as they’ve gotten older. Did the break help erase that dysfunction for you?

Every band has their own issues and different things that come up. For me, the biggest thing during the time off, and what really made me want to continue doing the band, specifically after decided he didn’t want to continue in the band anymore, [was] I just realized, Anthony, man, he’s my brother, I love him so much, and we started this band when we were kids. I wanted to keep that going, I never want to let that go. Playing with him is something, even though I can do other things that are exciting and beautiful and I always will do those things and I’ll always want to grow and do music outside of the band, the thing that we have is special to us and something that is blood. I can’t ever argue with that. That’s so important to me, such a part of who I am, such a part of the culture of who we are and what we created that I decided to keep that going. And I stand determined. I said, “Together let’s do this, let’s make this album, I love you, and let’s f—ing rock.” And as cliché as that might sound, I think for us as a band, and for he and I, both of us, we decided to do it.

How did Josh fit into the plan to keep going?

We agreed Josh is the best guy, then he agreed to do it. Josh bringing what he brought is f—ing great and it brought a new element to our band, a new type of interaction. I’m excited about the music we made together and it’s funny, because Josh isn’t the guy who right away hits you over the head with who he is. He’s much more subtle and he kind of creeps up on you. And over time he really revealed himself to be just the best person we could’ve got. And John Frusciante’s such a powerful musician and left such an imprint on our band and gave so much as a writer, as a player, a serious part of our band, that no one could ever replace John. No one’s ever gonna step in and do what John did. But Josh came in and does what Josh does and does it in a beautiful way. I’m grateful for what John brought, learning from him all the gifts he bestowed upon the band with his talents, writing and everything he did, and I’m grateful for Josh now, for the same and for the relationship that we’re developing.

Stylistically, what has he brought to the band?

Josh is a very subtle musician and it’s not so much about the big riff — it’s more subtle, sublime, texture type of playing. And the big difference is I started writing songs on piano for this record and Josh also wrote songs on piano, so a lot of the songs were written on the piano and then translated to [the] rock band. It has a different kind of feeling, kind of more of a liquid, poetic feeling is the best way I can describe it.

What do you take from this record when you hear it?

I love our new record. I feel very excited and hopeful that the music will touch the hearts of people listening to the record and seeing it live. It’s very dynamic music; it covers a real wide range of emotions and it’s exciting. You can dance to it, you can bang your f—ing head like an animal to it. It’s just beautiful. Source

 

Artist Direct: RHCP Chad Smith Interview

Artist Direct also ran an interview with Chad:

Chad Smith of Red Hot Chili Peppers Talks “I’m With You”, French Movies, Energy and Rebirth

“We’ve got a little bit of everything because that’s what we love,” declares Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith about his band’s forthcoming tenth studio album, I’m With You, due out August 30.

 That’s the wondrous and wonderful thing about The Red Hot Chili Peppers; they’re amazing at everything. Whether it’s a sun-soaked funk classic like “Give It Away” or a poetic and poignant ballad like “Desecration Smile”, the Chili Peppers always craft timeless tunes. I’m With You promises to be another collection of new classics featuring the band’s inimitable, infectious, and infinitely awesome stylings.

In order to preview I’m With You, Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith spoke to ARTISTdirect.com editor and Dolor author Rick Florino in this exclusive interview. He discusses the album, capturing energy, rebirth, what the cinematic equivalent of I’m With You is and more.

Did you have one overall vision for I’m With You before entering the studio?

We don’t really have a vision when we start out. Our vision is, “Let’s get together, play, and see what happens. Let’s write some great music.” Going into an album, we never have any pre-conceived notions of what it’s going to be. It just happens organically. Obviously, Josh Klinghoffer joined our group, and we knew it was going to be quite different. We just want to be honest and open and play from our hearts. Every time we go in to make a record, that’s what we do. That wasn’t any different this time. Having Josh was the big change. He did a great job and wrote great music with us. We couldn’t have asked for a better person to play music with.

With all of your albums, you capture a real visceral energy within these beautifully catchy songs. It feels like it’s planned out after the fact, but it naturally generates from the four of you.

Yup! You hit it. That’s absolutely what it is. It’s something that comes from the four of us. Everyone is very involved in that process and I think that’s a big reason why it sounds the way it does because we all have a lot of input. There you go. I can’t say it any better than you did [Laughs].

Even though the music collectively rises from the unit, each individual instrument always stands out.

Everything has its place. We try to construct our songs so everything that needs to be heard gets to be heard. We play like a band. It’s four guys in a room playing together. We don’t build it from the ground up with machines and all of that kind of stuff. We play rock music. It’s about catching a performance. That’s somewhat gone by the wayside with technology and stuff. That comes across and touches the listener when they hear that. Josh sings a lot of great harmonies. It’s whatever serves the song best. I want to make the song the best it can be. Whether it’s playing the simplest drum part or something more exciting that needs to be ferocious, that’s all in this record. Last time, we had 28 songs to do that [Laughs]. This time it’s half. It’s all in there, man. We love so many different kinds of music. We cover so many styles, but it’s still us. That’s what we do, and I think we’ve done it again.

Is every Red Hot Chili Peppers album a rebirth?

Every record is a real snapshot of where we’re at during that time in our lives as a band and as a people. It’s always been that way. It’s not like, “Hey, I’ve got this song from three years ago”. We’re writing songs, and for that six or eight months, it’s it. In this case, we wrote a lot of songs for about eleven months. Each time you make a record, you want to grow, change, push yourself, and take risks. It’s important for any artist in any art form. We want to do new stuff, but the chemistry we have is something special. Everyone has a lot of input into the music and everyone’s personality comes out in his instrument. I think that’s what makes us sound unique. It’s a combination of those guys and those notes, and we mean it. We’re playing because we love to. It’s from our hearts. That comes through to the listener. I don’t know in what way, but we’re very fortunate people want to hear our music after all of these years.

Does Rick Rubin help foster that feeling?

Yes, Rick Rubin is very like-minded when it comes to lots of things. Certainly in the musical realm, we have a great working relationship with him. He’s been working with us for 20 years on all of our records. We feel that he’s the fifth Chili Pepper [Laughs]. He’s someone that we love and trust. He’s always searching, changing, and looking for new things as a music lover. He’s passionate about music and life, and we are as well. We’re fortunate that we’ve been on this journey together. We’ve changed, and he’s changed. Hopefully, we’ve gotten better as musicians. He’s gotten even better as a producer. He’s just so good. He knows how to serve the song the best. It’s so helpful. When we bring him to start working on our songs, he’s that new, objective set of ears. It just works. We’ve got this thing that works well together.

What’s happening with The Bombastic Meatbats? You sound different in every project you do.

We played not too long ago. We shot a DVD in New York. It’s always a fun side thing. I don’t want to be in a Chili Pepper-sound-alike band. I wouldn’t do that. I’m in the best Chili Pepper band there is [Laughs]. So I’m doing this jazzy funk-fusion instrumental, or I’ll play that classic rock thing that I grew up with in Chickenfoot with Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, and Michael Anthony. I did a kids record with Dick Van Dyke. I bring all of that back into The Chili Peppers, and I have all of this experience. We’ve always done that. Flea has played with Patti Smith and Thom Yorke. We’re musicians. I love to be around people who are passionate about music, but I’m not going to do the same thing.

If you were to compare I’m With You to a movie or a combination of movies, what would you compare it to?

There’s a French movie called A Prophet. It’s pretty good. It’s kind of like the French Godfather. That’s what the new record sounds like [Laughs]. That’s just for me today. Tomorrow is another day. There’s a lot of love on it. I think it’s a very positive, uplifting piece of music that we’ve put together. There are a lot of different flavors on it. It’s very emotional, and it’s rocking. It sounds fresh to me. I’m very proud and happy about the way it came out.

Rick Florino Source

Video Interview with Chad Smith and Josh Klinghoffer: