Red Hot Chili Peppers Unlimited Love (Deluxe Edition) 2LP

TAS Rated 4/5 Music, 4/5 Sonics in the July/August 2022 Issue of The Absolute Sound!

Consequence Top 50 Albums of 2022 - Rated 48/50!

"Our only goal is to get lost in the music. We (John, Anthony, Chad and Flea) spent thousands of hours, collectively and individually, honing our craft and showing up for one another, to make the best album we could. Our antennae attuned to the divine cosmos, we were just so damn grateful for the opportunity to be in a room together, and, once again, try to get better. Days, weeks and months spent listening to each other, composing, jamming freely, and arranging the fruit of those jams with great care and purpose. The sounds, rhythms, vibrations, words and melodies had us enrapt.

"We yearn to shine a light in the world, to uplift, connect, and bring people together. Each of the songs on our new album, Unlimited Love, is a facet of us, reflecting our view of the universe. This is our life's mission. We work, focus, and prepare, so that when the biggest wave comes, we are ready to ride it. The ocean has gifted us a mighty wave and this record is the ride that is the sum of our lives. Thank you for listening; we hope you enjoy it."

After following his own solo-minded muse for over 15 years, guitarist John Frusciante has returned to his rightful perch within Red Hot Chili Peppers, and his expressive tones - combined with the in-studio sonic sugar synergy magic conjured by way of the re-enlistment of the band's heyday producer, Rick Rubin - fuel all 73 minutes of Unlimited Love. The secret Chilis sauce has essentially percolated from the rhythmic patter blend between singer Anthony Kiedis and bass impresario Flea, as Kiedis' SoCal-bred verbal flow is predicated on the usually propulsive low-end bed Flea lays down. Here, Frusciante enhances that musical mixture with independently minded yet song-structure supportive chordal blends. Kiedis has clearly worked on fine-tuning his vocal chops from their humble huckster beginnings into emotive singing, best evidenced by Love's melancholy bookends, the wistful tempo-shifting opener 'Black Summer' and the acoustic-driven closer, 'Tangelo.' The band also pushes many volume-swelling envelopes, the pinnacle being the pair of Who-like, 'Happy Jack'-inspired buildups during 'These Are the Ways.' If Frusicante remains in the fold and the Chilis continue to reinforce their four-way aural love foundation, the possibilities are, well, unlimited.