Jupiter; Song 13: Wet Sand

Rather than being a surf song, as the name may suggest, “Wet Sand” is a piece that evokes the image of the Wild West, with its guitar chords in the verse and short whistling solos and whatnot. It is probably the “Stairway to Heaven” of the album, in that it’s somewhat of an epic musical journey, albeit a condensed one that lasts just over 5 minutes. Like a crescendo, its scope gets bigger and bigger until the final act of the song, with its outstanding vocals from Kiedis, powerful bass from Flea, and a great drum fill from Chad right before one of my favourite guitar solos on the record, which is more melodic and less improvised shredwork than the other solos.

This is Kiedis’ shining moment on the record so far, with brilliant vocal melodies throughout and lyrics to match. According to Kiedis in an interview with Q magazine this year, the piece is a conversation between a boy who believes in divine creation and a girl who is a bit of a wreck (“the disrepair of Norma Jean could NOT compete with your routine”) that believes in evolution. I normally don’t care too much about the lyrics in Red Hot Chili Pepper songs, but the words are so powerful, I would rate it with “Californication” and “Venice Queen” as the best writing Kiedis has achieved yet.

With a more defining guitar riff and a more involved bassline in the verses, this would have been a timeless Red Hot Chili Pepper classic. As it stands, the last third of “Wet Sand” is the best musical moment on the album and as a whole "Wet Sand" is a top 5 piece in Stadium Arcadium.