Getting ready for Red Hot Chili Peppers gig this Spring, I went back to their old albums and bought their current one. And I noticed, I guess how everybody has noticed this at some point, how important Flea is central t to the band. RHCP's sound begins and ends with the bass. Everybody builds around it. Every song, even the ballads rests with Flea.
And it got me to singing: bands are like family units, it is difficult to see where the fault lines are: and it is nearly impossible to figure out the areas of dominant interview. It isn't usually Lennon/McCartney: often the power is hidden. It is a mix of sound and need. With RHCP you are listening to a funk band, funk is gonna have A LOT to do with the bass player. Right? Than why is George Clinton so obviously the leader of Funkadelia?
The Stones get their power from Charlie Watts – I am not suggesting they would fold if Watts left (I would except they got through Bill Wyman without a hiccup, though ont he flip side, they haven't recorded a good album since he left) but a band that rocks as hard as the Stones leads hard, hard, hard on its drummer.
Bright Eyes appears to be all about Conor Oberst, actually it is mostly about Mike Moggis. It is his experiment in emo sound and production, Conor writes them but Mogis makes them Bright Eyes as opposed to Conor solo.
Listening to RFCP you can't help but hear Flea maneuvering every single song. Makes you wonder, who is the hidden force in your household?