THE CHILIS ARE FASCINATING IN THEIR INCONSISTENCY
Blowing
Once the original re els, Red Hot Chili Peppers are now very much part of the establishment. Mark Robertson reckons that isn’t such a terrible thing
here‘s a tenuous logic that argues if an artist is not struggling their art is less \ ital in some way 'l‘ltL‘l'C’s ti lic‘ulllt} tllsl'c‘spcc‘l litil‘ Cill‘c‘c‘l‘isl attitudes in art. especiall) among musicians. htit there's a contradiction inherent to the notion that
musicians should alwa}s stri\ e to concentrate on their
music a much as possihle hut as soon as the} hegin to make a li\ing otit of it full-time. and it hecomes a career. tlie_\'re selling out and their work will he the worse for it. This argument is a hand} get out for defeatists aiid pessimistic underachie\ers e\ er} w here. Iiind an) artistic endea\our uncorrupted h_\ peole aspiration to get paid to do it. and )tiii'll find. well. nothing. It \llllpl} doesn‘t e\ist.
Red Hot ('hili l’eppers hax e enjtw ed a 24-year career that has emhraced hotli e\tremes of rock‘ii‘i'oll: rehellion and corporate careei'ism. In that time the} ~\ e gone the rehellious socks~on—cocks arch~hedoiiists. dri\eii h_\ a spectacular pharinaceutical.s to full} l‘eiig shui-ed tip. new age hippies. 'l‘hevx‘e gone through eight guitarists and .sex'en drummers hut ha\e maintained a recognisahle
image and hi'aiid. .-\nd then there's the little matter of
knocking otit eight alhums and selling mu 5() million copies of them worldwide.
(Nil) ['2 ha\e polarised puhlic opinion quite so strongl). 'l‘heii' macho. shirts ol‘l‘. tats otit. oiled up posturing was. for many. less (ireek gods. more Venice Beach lunks. The} hax e heeii percei\ ed as dumh. hooh-ogling jocks htit remain politicall} and sociall} aware performing at Democratic political rallies while maintaining a veneer of muso disengagement.
sinorgashord of
hot and cold
The ('hilis are fascinating in their inconsistency 'l’hey hax'e swung hetween outlandish crowd-pleasing showmeii sporting light htilh costumes for a headlining slot at Reading l-‘estiVal for e\.iiiiple to heads down. noodling jams in front of. lll.llllll people.
This inconsistenc} e\tends to their records. The hand hax'e alternated hetween had and good alhums. appearing to struggle to keep their e_\'e on the hall. The shaiiihles that is ()IH‘ llol .lliniilt' is sandwiched hetweeii the hi'uisiiig magic of" [flood Sugar Sm .llugik itlltl (‘(l/l/UI'Hlull/(HI. ttntl lllc‘} followed 2005K tremendous l)’_\' Illl’ Hat with last )c‘2ii"s two-disc sprawl Slut/rum .lnm/iimi which is. to he frank. an unchecked shamhles. luck} for them the} haxe enough qualit} tunes tucked awa} o\'er the last l4 _\ears to hold tip an} sags in a set list.
Red Hot ('hili l’eppers are among the true deserVing headliners in glohal rock music. l.ike 1'3. RliM. Radiohead and at a push. Metallica. the} inn e hoth popularit} am] the hack catalogue to support such an esteemed position. ’l‘hat the} can come to Scotland and till our national stadium with relati\e ease is a none- too suhtle indication of their standing. Bands like the (‘hili Peppers exist for two reasons: to gi\e aspirant rock madrigals something to aspire to. massi\ e critical and commercial success. and something to rehel against. something to he repulsed h}. to despise. to inspire said aspirants to pull new. exciting. innoxathe musical shapes out in reaction to their work. liither w a). we need them.
Hampden Park, Glasgow, Thu 23 Aug.
THE BEST ROCK, POP. JAZZ & FOLK
Slint They may have only produced two albums but Without them PJ Harvey would be Katie Melua and Mogwai would be linkin Park, such is their influence. Come hear the l‘)ittersweet inaiesty of Spider/and. performed in all its glory. See feature, page 10. ABC, Glasgow, Mon ’20 Aug. (Rock 8 Pop)
Sonic Youth They made Daydream Nation back in 1988 but it remains one of the true landmark albums of altrock. For these shows they Will play the album in its entirety. lhe second show is sold out. See feature. page 10. ABC. Glasgow, fue 21 8 Wed 2? Aug. (Rock 8 Pop)
Smashing Pumpkins Billy Corgan went off on a few tangents there — including the suspect electropop solo album and the much underrated Zwan with Davd Paio of Slint among others - but now he's back with a new album, Zeitgeist. It's almost like he never went away. See feature, page 10. Carling Academy, Glasgow, Wed 22 Aug. SOLD OU T (Rock 8 Pop)
Crystal Castles, Dance Lazarus Dance and Desolation Yes! Crystal Castles are named after an 808 arcade game and sounding like an 80s acrade game console mating with . . . an 80s acrade game console, or maybe her from Bis. Live, this Candian duo is truly terrifying. All the recommendation you need I suppose. Barfly, Glasgow, Thu 23 Aug. (Rock 8 Pop)
- 7 Dananananaykroyd The whole two drummer thing is a bit of a fun novelty when watching this mob live. but to be fair. they've got some tunes amid the scratching and failing.
Nice 'n 'S/eazy. Glasgow, Thu 23 Aug. (Rock 8 Pop)
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