One Hot Minute

I think this remains an underappreciated album, and part of that comes down to Dave Navarro, the guitarist who played with Jane's Addiction both before and after this period. I genuinely enjoy his playing, and it feels like a real missed opportunity that his time in the band ended so abruptly after just this one record.

I had a partner around this time who was a massive Chili Peppers fan, but I never fully converted the way she did. Kiedis has a distinctive voice, but I was never much of a fan of his singing, and I always found their albums at least somewhat inconsistent. Even Blood Sugar Sex Magik, which has some genuinely great tracks, has always felt to me like it maxed out the CD running time unnecessarily. Cut twenty-five minutes and it's a great record. As it stands, it's just a good one.

One Hot Minute has the same issue, and it drags a bit for the same reason, a handful of songs here simply aren't strong enough to justify the runtime, and Flea getting more room to sing wasn't really necessary either. But the album is varied and diverse, and this is roughly the last time the band genuinely pushed their own musical boundaries. Warped, Aeroplane, and My Friends are all catchy, even if they don't quite reach the level of genuine gems.

Kiedis's heroin addiction and what seems like a distracted Rick Rubin behind the desk make this feel like a false start rather than a dead end. There's a real alternate reality where the band bounced back from here with Navarro still in the fold, and I find that more interesting than dismissing this as simply a lesser record.

I never grew along with the band's later evolution. I bought Californation afterward, but my interest faded significantly from there. Mother's Milk, Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and One Hot Minute are the only three albums that still genuinely excite me. After that, the magic was gone for me. And the darker, heavier side of the band that shows up here is a side I actually quite like.

The music is good, but Anthony Kiedis is not. If there is one thing that this album list has challenged me on repeatedly is how I rationalize the art relative to the artist(s). I've found I can't really compartmentalize them.

Which brings up something I had hoped to find a way to respond to.

One of my other reviews is along similar lines, and it was interesting because someone called me out for being inconsistent in my views. I'd like that person to know that I have taken their challenge to heart, and it has altered how I approach this 1001 list and art in general.

What is clear to me now is that there are numerous artists where I don't know, and haven't tried to know, more about them. Initially that was pure ignorance in that I didn't even think to try and know more. Now, it's something of an on-going conundrum because I honestly do fear just how much art will be indelibly dimmed (for me anyhow) by realizing just how many artists are shitty people. Nonetheless, it's important to me that I not just consume the music, but that I understand what goes into it more fully.

I still can't compartmentalize my views. I can't be like, "setting aside their rapist past, I found their album upbeat and infectious - three stars," so my opinions stand. If I could change my votes on past reviews, there are likely many where I would, given what I know now.

With all of this said, I completely understand why other users would nominate this to the list. I'm sorry if this hits like a dig on the person that nominated it. That isn't my aim.

I do believe that the author of the book that the OG list came from has an opportunity with their platform to revise their list. Where an artist is undeniably influential, but they have problematic pasts, they can challenge their readers with that information. If there is an equally influential artist that isn't on the list, consider swapping them in instead.

Kiedis really is a terrible vocalist

I bought this CD as an 11 year old after liking Aeroplane on the radio and knowing rhcp was a band to like, but was annoyed at how much filler there was, even compared to other 90s radio rock CDs I was buying at the time. Time has not aged it well -- the funk bass is solid but so corny, the Janes Addiction style guitars don't fit at all, and his voice is a tough listen. The songs are bad, like, just rip offs of themselves, 90% of the album is shooting for Another Under the Bridge and missing wildly.

I’d have a few other RHCP albums above this one,