"Do not enter without decent shoes. I stare luxury hotelīs message in the door. The hotel is situated in Santa Monica. I have sandals in my feet but the porter let me in. "Sorry dear, I canīt hear a word you say", receptionist says." So who youīre going to meet?"
Finally I get hotelīs highest floor where I have the opportunity to interview the Red Hot Chili Peppers. A tall man leads me into the room where the RHCP newest album, By the Way, is playing. Someone is watching sport at a huge television. Next to me sits the RHCPī drummer, Chad Smith. " Oh shit, oh man...", Smith yels and eats peanuts. One player is carried away in the baseball field and Smith is nervous. I try to say something that fits for the situation but itīs difficult.
Then finally the interviews started. Someone asks Chad why the new album sounds so much lighter than the previous. "Well, thatīs what you think about it. Now we are at this point in our life and thatīs what we feel at the moment", Smith answers and doesnīt look very pleased. "This is a beautiful album which includes lots of emotion. Our band consists of four very special individuals and we have a special chemistry between us especially now when John is back. Earlier we didnīt respect John enough. Now we understand thet we have meant to be together in this universe and to do this special music", Smith continues.
I ask if the bandīs members are becoming old because the music sounds like this. Big mistake. "Maybe we are old but definately not bore", Smith answers. "Every album is a picture of in what situation we stand in our lives. We could be totally mad and crazy and then our music would sound like a chaos. Now we are in a good spirit, everyone is happy and healthy and respects life.I donīt think that age has nothing to do with this", Smith claims. "And still we are going to rock like maniacs", he continues.
"We just do so good songs as we can and if everyone likes our songs we are lucky!" I ask does the band still spend their free-time together or has the making of the music become just a daily job. "OK, Iīm REALLY OLD, I believe that. I could be your father!" Smith says with enthousiasm. "Well, weīre not anymore 26 years old guys, we donīt hang out in the klubs, drink and find girls like we used to do. We all have our families. I like more to spend the time with my children than hang out monday nights at the Viper Room. I love these guys but I donīt have to be with them all the time just to feel to connected to them. And, well... They are good pals but... Theyīre very short. Very very short and tiny men. But they have big penes!
Mr Smithīs sence of humour is hilarious. During the interview he have kicked me to my feet always when someone has praised the new album. ("Well, did you hear, it rocks!")
Anthony Kiedis is very short and slender. He wears gray trousers, black jeans jacket and a t-shirt. I ask Kiedis why the band decided to record some of the songs in the hotel called Chateau Marmont. "We could have chosen any place we would have wanted but we chose that place. John has lived there about a year and I have lived there three years ago. There is good energy and you can get good french fries there", Kiedis tells.
"I cried when I was listening to the song called Universally Speaking", Kieids reveals. "It reminds me about that perfect feeling when you are in touch with love and universe and you realize that everything will be okay because everything goes the way it shoul go. Album has another song called Venice Queen which also makes me cry. It tells our good friend who died last year. When I wrote songīs words I felt that I had a connection with her soul."
Kiedis has a word to say about the world politic. The message has been hidden behind the song called Cabron. "The song tells a story about a tough guy who hangs out in the parcs and scares others but on the other hand it tells how the USA works at the global level just the same way. I think that the USA is the best country but itīs politic can be sometimes very ugly and boast. Cabron tells how nice it would be if you wouldnīt have to scare those things and everyone could be friends and party together.
"When I wrote songs for the album BloodSugarSexMagik the producer asked me why couldnīt I just write songs about girls and cars. Well, I tried my best and made myself complete an idiot when I wrote song called The Greeting Song. If you try to force yourself into something, the finally result is bad:"
I asked Kiedis to remember something about Helsinki. "There was so dark. We went for buy some records and walked around in parcs and it was very gold! Very gold and dark. And the food was strange." Itīs nice to hear that Finland had made an impression for the band. Luckily Kiedis remember something else, too. "We got to know very nice girls. They hanged outside our hotel and finally we became friends with them. Those girls were young.
I ask Kiedis to tell his strangest experience with fans. "Lots of strange things has happened. I see very much these RHCP tattoos", Kiedis tells showing his own tattoos.. "Once one girl had tattooed my name in her legs and standed with her legs apart wanting to show me her tattoo", Kiedis says. "Once some people lived in my garden and I was very nervous. I had to call the police to get those people away", Kiedis tells with his big brown eyes.
One reporter asks is the RHCP nowadays more of a rock band than a funk band? "Funk still lies in us and itīs part of us but it doesnīt domineer us so much in this album. But the next album can be full of funky music", Kiedis consoles. "We can play anything, we have no limits."
Time is over, interview ends. One reporter asks Kiedisī signature. I donīt ask. Iīm not so amateur anymore!
