On a murky November night, The Chilis proved to be as Red Hot as ever. The opening night at the O2 was fuelled with high octane energy and The Red Hot Chili Peppers did not disappoint, even without John Frusciante (considered by many to be the quintessential Chili Pepper guitarist) who has been replaced by Josh Klinghoffer.
The night kicked off with Fool’s Gold to warm up the crowd and as an hour flew by The Chilis hit the stage. The band dished out a great set with plenty of older hits as well as a couple from their new album, I’m With You.
From the opening four songs, ‘Monarchy of Roses’, ‘Dani California’, ‘Can’t Stop’ and ‘Scar Tissue’, it became clear that a memorable, crowd pleasing night was to follow with much loved anthems, interspersed with newer stuff. Other classics, such as ‘Otherside’ and ‘Under the Bridge’ followed, flinging the crowd into an excitable frenzy!
With ten albums and legendary tunes under their belt, I was left wondering what The Chili Peppers could now bring to the table in these recent shows… but my doubts were quelled as soon as comeback single ‘The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie’ was belted out. The funk-pop tune with killer riffs and Anthony Kiedis’ wooing lyrics (‘tick-tock, I want to rock you like the Eighties’) confirmed that even after almost 30 years as a band, they still possess the ability to be creative whilst retaining that distinctive sound that we all crave.
The show was in full swing as soon as we heard the effortlessly recognisable opening chords of ‘By The Way’, with every single person in the sold-out O2 Arena swaying side to side as an array of graphics lit up the stage, lasers beaming across the arena. Given that the band have played ‘By The Way’ live more than 300 times (!), the sheer passion put into this night’s performance was incredible.
A cover of The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s ‘Fire’ and Stevie Wonder’s ‘Higher Ground’ were brilliantly chosen additional gems, and there wasn’t much else that The Chili Peppers could possibly give. ‘Californication’ and ‘Give It Away’ closed the show, and it was evident that the LA rockers are back to their very best; their first gig in 5 years was well worth the wait!
If you didn’t catch the Californian quartet this time round don’t worry, you can still capture some Californication… Kiedis recently announced that The Red Hot Chili Peppers will be playing at Knebworth House on Saturday June 23, as well as Sunderland’s Stadium of Light on Sunday, June 24 in 2012. They’re worth every penny!
