“I bow down”: the influential artist Flea will always admire
Flea and heavy music aren’t two things that are usually mentioned in the same breath. Sure, the Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist comes from a punk background and blends its frenzied energy with funk dynamics in the Californian group, but neither he nor his band are known for their heaviness or hardness. Even their darker moments lack the crunch of other groups exploring true atmosphere, whether this has to do with Flea’s work, the clean twang of John Frusciante’s Strat or Anthony Kiedis’ scat-like delivery.
While their music might not be the most muscular, the members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers are lifelong lovers of the heavy stuff, including Flea. His context in this area emerged from hardcore pioneers such as The Germs and Black Flag. The latter’s experiments with metal-esque textures opened his eyes to much meatier guitars and more complex dynamics than the original wave of punk produced.
After the West Coast thrash scene coalesced in 1983 with Metallica’s Kill ‘Em All, Flea quickly became a big fan of the San Francisco group. He was enraptured by their hardcore spirit, chugging guitars, technical brilliance, and, of course, the way they managed to fit catchy melodies into the complex mix. He first heard Metallica in 1984 when on tour with Red Hot Chili Peppers.
It was the early hours. Everyone was beat, and out through the radio arose music that was unlike anything he’d ever heard. It was violent but also exquisite.
That track was ‘Fight Fire With Fire’ from Metallica’s widely influential 1984 thrash classic Ride The Lightning. Existing at a strange nexus between punk and traditional heavy metal, the precision, aggression and intensity blew the young Flea’s mind, as did the fact it seemed to eschew any conventional songwriting pattern. From that moment on, the Red Hot Chili Peppers powerhouse has been an ardent follower of the James Hetfield group.
It wasn’t just their general vibe that appealed to Flea either; it was their in-house bass maestro, Cliff Burton, who pushed the melodic and percussive aspects of the four-string to new heights, refreshing it for the decade. He told Rolling Stone in 2010 that he believes ‘(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth’ from their debut is “one of the great moments in rock history for the electric bass guitar”. He added: “Every Cliff Burton-based solo I’ve ever heard is a soulful, psychedelic, headbanging expression that rocks your world, trips your brain out and gets the house rockin’.”
Flea is also acutely aware that Metallica’s becoming such a mainstream force with thrash metal is a remarkable achievement. Basically, every aspect of their early music was not fit for mass consumption. It was intended as a rebellion against the political and musical status quo.
In the interview, Flea revealed he is particularly in love with one aspect of Metallica’s work: the way they draw upon pain for artistic inspiration and the escape from it they offer. At shows, the quartet and fans uncoil together, and it’s beautiful. Flea confessed, “I bow down to it.”
The Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist concluded: “For the people who give it up and get rocked by Metallica, the world is a less lonely place. When a person gets rocking to their music, everything else disappears, and that person is just one with the rock. It is an inexplicable, awesome thing, and I bow down to it. Pain and hurt can be a muse for great art.”
