Every once in a while, there comes a negative review for a show, movie, or concert that is notable for just how bad it skewers something. In this case, we’ve got a review from the St. Paul Pioneer Press for the Red Hot Chili Peppers concert in Minnesota over the weekend. They haven’t played in Minnesota since 2017, so it was fans first chance in a long time to see music from their latest records.
Earlier on the tour, in Australia, fans were divided as to how they thought about the tour playing a majority of music from their latest two records, Unlimited Love and Return of the Dream Canteen. The author of the review, Ross Raihala had some choice words for the group.
“If Frusciante was the hero of the night — and he definitely was — the band succeeded in spite of lead singer Anthony Kiedis, who is one of the least compelling frontmen of his generation.
“It doesn’t help that his greasy, dyed-black bangs cover his eyes and he holds the microphone in a manner that obscures much of the rest of his face. He had the look, and vibe, of a sullen, petulant teenager (with lots of wrinkles).”
He went on to talk about the setlist and how long the show went. It looks like fans connected with their older material, but not so much with the new stuff.
“Despite a total of 34 songs and a two and a half hour running time, the records don’t add much to the band’s legacy and, in some cases like the single ‘The Drummer,’ actually harm it.
“They slipped in several new ones Saturday night, with the likes of ‘These Are the Ways’ and ‘Tippa My Tongue’ sounding even more bland and aimless live than on tape.”
It sure seems like the classic problem of a band wanting to get out and play their new music on tour. The Rolling Stones or Paul McCartney can go out and play the hits for ages and ages, but other acts need to get some new blood in their setlist. So, there’s probably a happy medium that allows artists to play their new stuff and also include the hits that audiences want.
So, what do you think of the Red Hot Chili Peppers latest records? Are they as bad as the reviewer was saying?
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Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press
