Into the lyrics?
As many know, The Red Hot Chili Peppers have released their ninth studio album, Stadium Arcadium. The guitarist for RHCP, John Frusciante, said, "the fans who do not like Stadium Arcadium are not true RHCP Fans" and I have to agree with John. In an interview with Yahoo! the lead singer, Anthony Kiedis, said
There are a lot of things that is a part of our chemistry. Sometimes it's the suffering that becomes a part of our chemistry, sometimes it's the contemptment, on this particular record, there is an abundance of love. It kind of changed our dispositions when we would come together, everyone was happy and more capable of listening to space. So when we get into a room, we are all kind of listening...
Just from listening to the album, the listener can get an insight as to what Anthony was talking about. There is an obvious abundance of love with this album. It shows with the way they play their instruments, the way their instruments and vocals wo
rk and mesh together. This record is very carefully put together, yet at the same time, it sounds like they were just jamming out. I feel that it is very hard to achieve that sound. For anyone who cares about music and the meanings of the songs, it is clear that many many hours went into making this record. Which also means, there had to of been a lot of love shared between the bandmates.
Since I purchased Stadium Arcadium, maybe a month ago, I have not been able to stop listening to it. Just listening to their music can blow someone away. There are so many levels to every single song. If someone was more interested in the musical aspect of the songs, that person could spend hours just reading into the musicality of it.
And on the other hand, if someone was interested in the lyrics of the songs, that person could also spend hours determining what each song meant lyrically.
And on another hand (or foot, since there are only two hands) if someone was equally interested in the music and the lyrics, that person could spend days comparing the way the music and lyrics work with each other. In short, a person could lose themselves listening to this album. As I have many times, and probably many more to come.
I have always loved the fact that RHCP lyrics inform you as much as they keep you in the dark. The trick to figuring out a RHCP song is to be able to link the seemingly unrelated subjects of the song. Sometimes it is with one simple background fact, other times it is with a philosophy or personal idea of a bandmate. Either way, I love the way Anthony is able to talk about everything, yet nothing at all.
My favorite song off of the new album is probably, "Hard to Concentrate".
I feel as if the first stanza of the the song is about two people having sex.
The point of view is obviously from a man, Anthony states that the person
wants to be a part of the child's life, but also states "All I want is for you to be happy." Meaning, that whoever the speaker in the song is, is obviously a very caring and understand man. That line is possibly the most important line of the song, it creates an entry to the speakesr soul. Meaning, the speaker in the song obviously has made it very clear that he wants to be a part of this woman's life and help raise their child. He also realizes that it is not entirely his decision, it is her decision too. So, after telling her how he personally feels, he backs away and allows her to think about what she wants and who she is, both as a person and a spiritual being.
Obviously, the subject was not as certain as what she wanted out of the relationship in the beginning.
Possibly the most obvious part of the song is "Do you want me to show up for duty?." I feel that both the speaker in the song and Anthony feel "duty" is old fashioned, especially with all the romantic words Anthony had chosen to associate with the subject before this point. I feel the word "duty" was more thrown in there for the listeners. Probably as a way for them to quietly, and politely, say "Hey, this is about having a baby."
I am slightly torn between the ending of the song, I want to say that it ends happily. The song itself is very upbeat and happy, which helps allude to a happy ending. However, the lines:
Confuse the listener. Because, they give both a happy and sad illusion,
depending on how it is looked at. One could say that the lover found herself because she is alone, and on the other hand someone else could say that she found herself with the help of the speaker.
In the next stanza (which is a very important and dramatic stanza):
Most likely alludes to the idea that the couple is going to stay together and start their family. For the most part, I feel the song ends on a happy note. The above stanza is also slightly alluding to a wedding ceremony. Because of the noticeable breaks in the song, it makes it seem as if they are at the alter and at the end of the stanza is similar to the priest pronouncing them man and wife.
The spacing of the words begins in the stanza above. "And finally you have found...yourself...with me." By combining the first half of the next stanza it is clear to see that the woman and man had found a strong love between them.
With all that said, pretty much the only thing left to discover is; Who is the speaker in the song? Judging from past songs and even some of the other new songs, more than likely it is about a bandmate, or someone really close to the band. Generally speaking, RHCP works as one with their songs.
During the Yahoo! interview, Anthony said that both Flea [Michael Balzary] and Chad Smith were expecting children when this album was being written. Meaning, the subject is most likely Flea or Chad.
According to Wikipedia, Chad and his current wife were married in May of 2004. Wikipedia also says that Chad has four children total, the first one was born in 1997, the second 1998, the third 2000, and the fourth 2005. While they do not state which child belongs to which mother, it is safe to assume that the first 3 belong to the first wife, and the last one belongs to the second wife. With that said, the song is probably not about Chad, because if he was married in 2004, and had his child in 2005, they were married before they found out about their child. According to both Wikipedia and IMDb Chad was married for at least a year before his wife gave birth to his son.
This leaves Flea. According to Wikipedia, Flea and his fiancee, Frankie Rayder, had a daughter, Sunny Bebop, in October of 2005. However, according to Frankie's Wikipedia and IMDB site, the two are married and according to Flea's information on both the sites, they are engaged. Either way, they are newly weds. Meaning, they were married, or became engaged after they found out about the baby. Which means the couple had to figure out what they were going to do with their child, much like the couple in the song.
Since most of this information is secondhand, and from the internet, it is not entirely reliable. However, I feel it is safe to say that the song is about Flea.
rk and mesh together. This record is very carefully put together, yet at the same time, it sounds like they were just jamming out. I feel that it is very hard to achieve that sound. For anyone who cares about music and the meanings of the songs, it is clear that many many hours went into making this record. Which also means, there had to of been a lot of love shared between the bandmates.Since I purchased Stadium Arcadium, maybe a month ago, I have not been able to stop listening to it. Just listening to their music can blow someone away. There are so many levels to every single song. If someone was more interested in the musical aspect of the songs, that person could spend hours just reading into the musicality of it.
And on the other hand, if someone was interested in the lyrics of the songs, that person could also spend hours determining what each song meant lyrically.
And on another hand (or foot, since there are only two hands) if someone was equally interested in the music and the lyrics, that person could spend days comparing the way the music and lyrics work with each other. In short, a person could lose themselves listening to this album. As I have many times, and probably many more to come.
I have always loved the fact that RHCP lyrics inform you as much as they keep you in the dark. The trick to figuring out a RHCP song is to be able to link the seemingly unrelated subjects of the song. Sometimes it is with one simple background fact, other times it is with a philosophy or personal idea of a bandmate. Either way, I love the way Anthony is able to talk about everything, yet nothing at all.
My favorite song off of the new album is probably, "Hard to Concentrate".
Hustle, bustle and so much muscle awww Cells about to separate And I find it hard to concentrateI think the "hustle, butsle" is alluding to the image of two people caught in a sexual act. "So much muscle," probably is referring to the penis. "Aww" is mostly likely the orgasm. After understanding the first line, I feel the next two lines come in to understanding easily. "Cells about to separate," is the end of the act. Not to be grotesque, but it is the male pulling himself out of the female. Possibly, "And I find it hard to concentrate," is alluding to an idea that maybe the couple did not use protection and the male was supposed to pull out, however, he was so into the act that he could not concentrate. It also alludes to the title of the song.
The point of view is obviously from a man, Anthony states that the person
wants to be a part of the child's life, but also states "All I want is for you to be happy." Meaning, that whoever the speaker in the song is, is obviously a very caring and understand man. That line is possibly the most important line of the song, it creates an entry to the speakesr soul. Meaning, the speaker in the song obviously has made it very clear that he wants to be a part of this woman's life and help raise their child. He also realizes that it is not entirely his decision, it is her decision too. So, after telling her how he personally feels, he backs away and allows her to think about what she wants and who she is, both as a person and a spiritual being.Obviously, the subject was not as certain as what she wanted out of the relationship in the beginning.
Death defying this mess I'm buying, it's raining down with love and hate. And I find it hard to motivate.In the next stanza Anthony says "And I'm not about to hesitate." By combining the two stanzas I feel as if the woman was not completely sure the speaker wanted to be in her life. By adding "And I'm not about to hesitate," makes it clear that the speaker in the song is very clear on what he wants out of this situation, and the woman does not need to worry about him changing his mind.
Possibly the most obvious part of the song is "Do you want me to show up for duty?." I feel that both the speaker in the song and Anthony feel "duty" is old fashioned, especially with all the romantic words Anthony had chosen to associate with the subject before this point. I feel the word "duty" was more thrown in there for the listeners. Probably as a way for them to quietly, and politely, say "Hey, this is about having a baby."
I am slightly torn between the ending of the song, I want to say that it ends happily. The song itself is very upbeat and happy, which helps allude to a happy ending. However, the lines:
Do you want me to show up for duty and
Serve this woman and honor her beauty and
Finally you have found something perfect and
Finally you have found... yourself
Confuse the listener. Because, they give both a happy and sad illusion,
depending on how it is looked at. One could say that the lover found herself because she is alone, and on the other hand someone else could say that she found herself with the help of the speaker.In the next stanza (which is a very important and dramatic stanza):
With me... will... you... agree to take
This man... into your world...
And now... we are as one...
Most likely alludes to the idea that the couple is going to stay together and start their family. For the most part, I feel the song ends on a happy note. The above stanza is also slightly alluding to a wedding ceremony. Because of the noticeable breaks in the song, it makes it seem as if they are at the alter and at the end of the stanza is similar to the priest pronouncing them man and wife.
The spacing of the words begins in the stanza above. "And finally you have found...yourself...with me." By combining the first half of the next stanza it is clear to see that the woman and man had found a strong love between them.
With all that said, pretty much the only thing left to discover is; Who is the speaker in the song? Judging from past songs and even some of the other new songs, more than likely it is about a bandmate, or someone really close to the band. Generally speaking, RHCP works as one with their songs.
During the Yahoo! interview, Anthony said that both Flea [Michael Balzary] and Chad Smith were expecting children when this album was being written. Meaning, the subject is most likely Flea or Chad.
According to Wikipedia, Chad and his current wife were married in May of 2004. Wikipedia also says that Chad has four children total, the first one was born in 1997, the second 1998, the third 2000, and the fourth 2005. While they do not state which child belongs to which mother, it is safe to assume that the first 3 belong to the first wife, and the last one belongs to the second wife. With that said, the song is probably not about Chad, because if he was married in 2004, and had his child in 2005, they were married before they found out about their child. According to both Wikipedia and IMDb Chad was married for at least a year before his wife gave birth to his son.
This leaves Flea. According to Wikipedia, Flea and his fiancee, Frankie Rayder, had a daughter, Sunny Bebop, in October of 2005. However, according to Frankie's Wikipedia and IMDB site, the two are married and according to Flea's information on both the sites, they are engaged. Either way, they are newly weds. Meaning, they were married, or became engaged after they found out about the baby. Which means the couple had to figure out what they were going to do with their child, much like the couple in the song.
Since most of this information is secondhand, and from the internet, it is not entirely reliable. However, I feel it is safe to say that the song is about Flea.
Photos: [from top to bottom]
John Frusciante
Anthony Kiedis
Chad Smith
Flea [Michael Balzary]
John Frusciante
John Frusciante
Anthony Kiedis
Chad Smith
Flea [Michael Balzary]
John Frusciante
posted by Em at
12:59:00 AM
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