Best of Mars

I give up. Its too much work, the comments are down, my reviews have been said to be “long-winded” (Boisvert, 2006) and truth be told I should have known I could never do something as epic as a song by song review of a 28 piece album. The lesson is, never try. Anyway, here are some snapshots of the best that Mars has to offer. Take it or leave it.

Mars; Song 1: Desecration Smile

“Desecration Smile” opens the Mars disk, and is supposedly the fourth non-American single of Stadium Arcadium. Another laidback pop tune, this time based around acoustic guitar, it is more mature and well-rounded than other like-minded pieces in say, By The Way. I’m not convinced that it is a great album opener, as it has great competition in “Around The World”, “By The Way” and even “Dani California”. However, this song really shows of Kiedis’ improvement as a vocalist in recent years, at least in the studio. Previously he would not have been able to sustain such a relatively high-pitched melody, and with it such a gentle, reflective protagonist to carry the song. This, along with the mysterious vibe of the piece, makes it stand out in this collection of songs.

Mars; Song 2: Tell Me Baby

One of the best tracks and an obvious choice for a single, as it’s a song that shows the Chili Peppers at their bass-slapping, groin-grabbing, uhh….something-rapping best. Like “Can’t Stop”, it’s a party song, but I like that it also has a deeper meaning, detailing the current of shitty “talent” that migrates to the Peppers’ hometown Los Angeles in the pursuit of fame and other concepts. If it had more memorable solos to flesh out the piece, it would be a perfect Red Hot Chili Pepper song, but it’s an instant classic nonetheless, and that’s good enough.

Mars; Song 8: Make You Feel Better

This song addresses the fact that Red Hot Chili Peppers are aware of the powerful effect that their music can have people, that it has the ability to get people through tough times. Perhaps more than any other song, it highlights the great strength of Stadium Arcadium; that with 28 songs, there really is something for everyone. At any other prior point in my life I would have hated the song, dismissing it as Red Hot Chili Peppers attempting to write a theme song for the hit TV show “Friends”. But, having discovered the Beatles earlier this year, and thus learning a lot about melody, this song resonated with me upon first listen with its singalong chorus, its restriction to 4 or five chords, and its nice skipping beat, as Chad Smith embraces Ringo Starr’s ideology of “less is more” whole-heartedly. Hands down, my favourite song on Stadium Arcadium.

Mars; Song 13: Turn It Again

At just over 6 minutes, this is the album's longest track. Another jam in which the instruments are playing together but find their own completely individual space. Features some of the best performances the Red Hot Chili Peppers have ever committed to tape, the most most obvious of which is John’s solo, which combines his most intense shredding ever recorded with at least 20 different guitar tracks (I lost count myself, but I believe according to a guitar interview John stated he personally mixed around eighty different tracks for this song alone). The solo raises the bar not only for himself but for pop/rock in standard four four timing. However, lend a spare ear to Chad Smith; his drumming in the verse is incredible. Its amazing to think that he would ever use Talking Heads as a reference point but there you go. Probably the least conventional song on Stadium Arcadium, hopefully it’s a sign of things to come for the next album.