Hello RHCP...

The band is preparing to return to the studios this September.
Two months into rumors of a band break up (see Anthony Kiedis’s Rolling Stone interview) and more than two years since the release of their Grammy winning double album Stadium Arcadium, the Red Hot Chili Peppers are finally ready to head back into the studio.

A lot has happened in the past two years for the Red Hot Chili Peppers: lead vocalist Kiedis is now a father, drummer Chad Smith has been working with Sammy Hager’s newest attempt at a supergroup, guitarist John Frusciante has been pursuing solo projects, and bassist Flea has, well, been Flea. As if completing an 18-month world tour spanning four continents weren’t enough.

Now, almost a year into the band’s hiatus, Smith has dismissed all rumors of a split. In fact, Smith claims that the best of the Red Hot Chili Peppers is yet to come.

After selling 7 million copies worldwide and receiving seven Grammy nominations for Stadium Arcadium, it’s hard to imagine how much further the Red Hot Chili Peppers have on their journey of authentic alternative rock genius and pure rock-stardom – 25 years in the making. It’s even more difficult, if not impossible when considering the stylistic diversity of their last album, to determine what road the band will take in getting there.

Maybe they’ll grow nostalgic of their early years and create a funk-infused jam album including Kiedis’s nonsensical raps, or maybe they’ll decide to create a more melodic and structure orientated album with Kiedis’s deeply personal lyrics. Maybe they’ll do both. Maybe they’ll do neither. Maybe they’ll do all of the above and still manage to discover new and uncharted musical territory in the formation of what may become one of the greatest albums to date.

For a band as talented, proven, and determined as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, surely all this and more is not impossible. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though – all there is to be 100 percent certain of is that a new album is soon to be underway. For now, everything else remains pure speculation.