Concert Review: Red Hot Chili Peppers in Seattle

People gathered early on St.Patrick’s Day to fill up the sold out Key Arena for the much anticipated Red Hot Chili Peppers concert.  The band which formed in 1983 was stopping by Seattle in support of their eleventh studio album, The Getaway.  The night started with openers Jack Irons and Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue taking the stage. The real surprise was when Eddie Vedder joined Jack Irons (the first RHCP drummer), for a cover of Pink Floyd‘s “Shine On You Crazy Diamonds.”

The lights turned off shortly after nine and first on stage was drummer Chad Smith, followed by Flea and Josh Klinghoffer.  The three smiled with excitement as they took their places on stage and started by jamming for a few minutes, as fans cheered with enthusiasm.  It wasn’t long before singer Anthony Kiedis ran out, dressed in all black shorts, t-shirt and baseball cap and began the set with “Around the World.”  Flea stood out a little more with his colorful attire, while Smith wore his signature backwards baseball cap with sleeveless shirt and Klinghoffer looked like he was channeling a little of Layne Staley.

The stage was pretty much wide open, leaving a lot of room for them to run around during their trademark high energy performance.  Looking above there was a light installation that was as long as the main floor, which we got to see starting with “Otherside.”  Lights were hanging on wires, creating unique designs throughout the night adding a very fresh element to the live show.

Flea spoke a few times saying hi and spreading positive messages of love and peace, as well as stating that the Supersonics should come back. Before “Aeroplane” he also thanked the openers and said that it’s always nice to share the stage with their brother Jack.  The quartet was as explosive as ever, jamming out between songs and going into songs they chose on the spot.  Everything is a suggestion before the night starts with them, they play whatever their mood dictates, switching up a lot of setlists on their tour.

This night the crowd got to hear “Charlie” for the first time since 2012, along with a powerful cover of “Higher Ground,” which Kiedis encouraged everyone to take off their shirts and wave them around.  Their explosive dynamic made every tune an enjoyment, as they ran around the stage sweating and having a great time.  Their main set ended with “Soul to Squeeze,” and “By the Way,” that had everyone in the audience standing up and singing along. During the encore, Klinghoffer returned alone and covered an emotional “Until the Ocean” by Malfunkshun. The rest came out to finish with “Goodbye Angels,” and jammed into “Give It Away,” which made it a great way to end the night.  It is always such a fun time when RHCP come through town, as you get the feeling that they enjoy every moment of doing what they love.  After so many years performing it’s hard to keep that but they have found a way to make every show feel like it’s their first, full of energy and liveliness.

Check out more photos from the show HERE.

Sophia Barkalakis

Music is probably the most important part of her life. Sophia is constantly searching for new material, old and new. Always looking forward to the next live show she can attend, ready to immerse herself in the sound. "There is something so magical about attending a live show that you cannot possibly feel from a recording itself that makes it worth going to", she says. She also says she's lucky to be able to combine her passion for music with her obsession of capturing moments. She finds that being able to look at a photograph and be transported to that second of your life is indescribable and she's so grateful for all those great moments.

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