The Getaway (Red Hot Chili Peppers album)

The Getaway
Studio album by Red Hot Chili Peppers
Released	June 17, 2016
Recorded	2014–16
Studio	The Sound Factory, Hollywood, California
Genre	Funk rock[1] alternative rock[2] pop rock[3]
Length	53:48
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Danger Mouse
Red Hot Chili Peppers chronology
Cardiff, Wales: 6/23/04 (2015) The Getaway (2016) Live In Paris EP (2016)
Singles from The Getaway
"Dark Necessities" Released: May 5, 2016 "Go Robot" Released: September 8, 2016 "Sick Love" Released: December 4, 2016

The Getaway is the eleventh studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released through Warner Bros. on June 17, 2016.^[4] This is the band's first studio album since 2011's I'm with You. It was produced by Danger Mouse, who replaced Rick Rubin after twenty-five years and six albums as the band's producer, making it the first non-Rubin produced album since 1989's Mother's Milk, while its release makes the current lineup of the band only the second in the group's history to record more than one album together.

The Getaway made its debut at number one in ten different countries while reaching number two in the band's home country of the United States along with the United Kingdom and Canada. Since its release, the album has received mostly favorable reviews.

The album was preceded by the first single "Dark Necessities" on May 5, 2016.^[5] "Dark Necessities" became the band's 13th number-one single on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart, a record they have held since 2006's "Snow ((Hey Oh))" and currently hold over Linkin Park (11). It was also their 25th top-ten on the Alternative Songs chart, a record they hold over U2 (23). "Dark Necessities" became only the fourth song ever to top the Mainstream Rock, Alternative Songs and Adult Alternative charts at the same time.^[6] The album's title track received radio airplay in the UK despite never being released as an official single. "Go Robot" was released as the album's second single on September 8, 2016 while "Sick Love" was released as the third single on December 4, 2016.

Background

Production on the album began in 2014. However, the project was delayed for eight months due to bassist Flea suffering a broken arm sustained while snowboarding. Anthony Kiedis said:

We had an unusually difficult experience making this record where we wrote 20-30 songs and it was all ready to go and we thought it was happening, and then Flea went snowboarding and broke his arm real bad, which was a bit of a setback... So we re-thought everything and then we didn’t have a producer and we were just sort of lost in space with all these songs. And lo and behold it was meant to be, as these things can be, and when all the dust settled Brian Burton, aka Danger Mouse, emerged and said, "Let's go make a record". We we're like "Great, we have all these songs" and he was like "Leave those there, let's go write new songs in the studio". Initially there was an affinity and a marriage to all these other songs, but the only way that we saw this working was to have trust in him and get rid of our old ideas and our old way of doing things and say "If this is going to work, we just have to throw ourselves off the cliff and see what happens".^[7]

Kiedis in a May 9, 2016 interview on BBC Radio 2 said of the album that lyrically many of the songs were influenced by a two-year relationship that fell apart like a nuclear bomb and that his favorite song is "The Getaway".^[8] Chad Smith discussed the album in a May 17, 2016 radio interview said the band loved Rick Rubin but they wanted to work with someone different this time, how it was important to change producers and be inspired in a different way. Smith also said "We Turn Red" was one of his favorite songs and that "Go Robot", another song he loves, which is very funky, likely would be a single.^[9] In an interview with Pearl Jam's Mike McCready which was recorded in late April 2016 however aired on Sirius XM on May 18, 2016, Flea said that "Go Robot" was going to be the first single and described the song as a funny, funky, up-tempo jam and inspired by the Prince song "Controversy". In that same interview, Chad said that Josh Klinghoffer plays bass on "The Hunter" and that it was the only song on the album where Flea did not play on. Smith described Klinghoffer's playing as sounding like Paul McCartney.^[10][11] The band confirmed during an album preview show on May 26, 2016 that the previously reported information of Elton John appearing on the album was true and that he plays piano on "Sick Love". John and longtime collaborator Bernie Taupin have a writing credit on the song. Anna Waronker, best known for being the singer of That Dog, provides vocals on "The Getaway". In a June 7, 2016 interview, Kiedis said that Danger Mouse was the reason "Dark Necessities" became the first single. The band had pushed for "The Getaway" to be the first single while management and the record label wanted "Go Robot".^[12]"Encore" originally started out as an instrumental jam and was performed for the first time on the previous 2013/2014 tour.

Packaging

The album cover is a painting by Kevin Peterson. According to Peterson "The Red Hot Chili Peppers wanted to use my painting Coalition II for the cover of their upcoming album. I told em it was cool but not to hound me for autographs. Special thanks to Chloe and @Chelsea Marie Bradley for some fine modeling."^[13] Anthony Kiedis in an interview on the Kevin and Bean show on May 5, 2016 discussed the album cover saying "Normally we get a little more high brow artsy, and this just felt extremely warm and human, even though it’s animals, it felt human. And it’s also us. Chad is the bear, Josh is the girl and Flea is the raccoon and me as the funny little raven out front."^[7]

Promotion

The band performed an album preview show on May 26, 2016. Four songs from the album were performed. iHeartRadio aired the show online on June 17, 2016, the day The Getaway was released. A music video for "Dark Necessities" was filmed with Olivia Wilde as the director and was released on June 16, 2016.^[14]

On May 26, 2016, the band released the title track on their YouTube channel and on June 9, 2016 released "We Turn Red". While not singles, the two songs were made available to purchase the following day after their release along with as a free downloads for those who pre-order the new album.^[15][16]

On June 9, 2016 it was announced that fans in New York City and Los Angeles could enter to win an invitation to an exclusive private listening party of The Getaway on June 13, 2016.^[17] Fans in other countries such as Brazil and Argentina (June 14),^[18] Italy and Thailand (June 15)^[19] and Mexico (June 16)^[20] also had a chance to attend at private listening parties.

The band appeared on the June 14, 2016 episode of The Late Late Show with James Corden for the pre-taped segment of Carpool Karaoke where they drove around Los Angeles singing their own songs in a karaoke style with the host.^[21] During the filming of the segment, Kiedis saved the life of a baby. Kiedis told Chris Moyles on UK radio station Radio X: "We had a very interesting unscripted moment. We danced-off, we tied and then we were going to celebrate with some Mexican food on the corner. And a woman came out of her house, holding a child saying 'My baby, my baby, my baby can't breathe!' We all ran across the street, the woman thrust the baby into my arms, the baby was not breathing. I thought 'I'm gonna try and do a little baby CPR real quick, see if I can get some air in this kid.' I tried to open the mouth, [it was] locked shut. So I started rubbing the belly, bubbles came out of the mouth, the eyes rolled back into place, the ambulance showed up and I handed the baby over, who was now breathing and fine. Then we went back to shooting Carpool Karaoke."^[22]

On June 15, 2016, Sirius XM Radio channel Lithium became Red Hot Chili Peppers Radio until June 22, 2016. The channel played music spanning the band's entire career with exclusive commentary on writing, recording and performing live. Also songs from influential artists hand-picked from the band's personal music collection were played. Chris Rock, a longtime friend and fan of the band, hosted the limited-run channel.^[23]

"Go Robot" was released as the album's second single. A music video directed by Tota Lee was confirmed to be in production on July 26, 2016 ^[24] A teaser clip for the video was released on August 29, 2016.^[25] The video was released on September 8, 2016.

"Sick Love" was released as the third single on December 4, 2016. The animated music video was directed and illustrated by Kiedis' ex-girlfrend Beth Jeans Houghton.^[26]

Critical reaction

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	66/100[27]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[28]
Clash	[29]
Classic Rock	[30]
Consequence of Sound	C+[31]
The Independent	[32]
The Guardian	[1]
NME	[33]
Pitchfork Media	5.4/10[34]
Rock Sound	6/10[35]
Rolling Stone	[36]

The Getaway has received favourable reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 66, based on 25 reviews, which indicates "generally favourable reviews".^[37] Nate Chinen of the New York Times gave the album a positive review stating "It doesn’t sound exactly like classic-vintage Chili Peppers, but it might just sound like how you remember them." He would go on to say "Danger Mouse takes a Rubinesque approach, smartly punching up the sinewy cohesion that still sets the Chili Peppers apart", while adding that guitarist Josh Klinghoffer "sounds fully vested now".^[38] Andy Gill of the Independent gave the album 4 out 5 saying "As ever, California gets plenty of mentions, though there’s less filler than usual, the album reaching a yearning epiphany in the string-draped song for a son, “The Hunter”."^[32] Simon Harper of Clash magazine gave the album an 8 out of 10, calling the The Getaway "a subtle, intimate, and expressive album." He would also praise the focus and restraint shown in the album saying the "focus on delicate and melodic dynamics throughout suggests a more profound exploration of their sound beyond each musician’s virtuoso abilities." He would close the review stating "The brilliance of ‘The Getaway’ is in its subtleties, which define their most intimate and expressive album to date, and suggest that, after 32 years, the Chilis can still keep us guessing."^[29] David Stubbs of Classic Rock magazine gave the album 4 stars out of 5, praising the bands "expertise and the masterly stitching qualities of Danger Mouse" and would call the album "a tightly woven affair, never messy or maudlin, or self-indulgent; a dreamcoat of many colours, a marble rye of genres."^[30]

Glenn Gamboa of Newsday gave the album a very positive review and score of A-, saying "the Red Hot Chili Peppers sound energized and adventurous" and that "Josh Klinghoffer comes into his own as the band's guitarist." He would end by saying "The Getaway funnels the wildness of Mother's Milk and the ambitions of Stadium Arcadium into the Peppers' most focused — and artistically consistent — album yet."^[33] Darryl Sterdan of Toronto Sun gave the album a positive review saying "The Getaway is an exercise in finesse and nuance. The beats are more straightforward and flowing. The arrangements are simpler and airier...Everything from electronic squiggles and strings to ringing bells and handclaps mark this as one of the group’s most sonically diverse outings."^[39] Will Hermes of the Rolling Stone gave the album 3 1/2 stars out of 5, saying "...the Peppers' 11th LP is a bold attempt to jibe their past party-dog selves with their present-day artistic ambitions – not always a perfect fit but a compelling one."^[36] Matt Collar of AllMusic gave the album 4 stars out of 5, saying "The Getaway is a sophisticated work of dark-hued maturity that finds the long-running California outfit expanding their sound into nuanced, '70s-style orchestral soul and funky psychedelia". He would also note that "sonically it feels as if the band and Klinghoffer have finally gelled as a complete creative unit." He would go on to praise the "80's electro-infused 'Go Robot'", "athletic funk punk jam" "This Ticonderoga", as well as "The Longest Wave" and "Feasting on the Flowers" for their "melodic, psychedelic quality that feels inspired by the Beatles' late-'60s period". He would conclude the review saying "The Getaway is a nuanced album, rife with journeyman craft and poetry, that proves the Red Hot Chili Peppers still have plenty of their own creative fire."^[28]

Patrick Ryan of USA Today gave the album a positive review, and praised the band for "their semi-reinvention". He would call "Sick Love", "Go Robot", and "Detroit" highlights of the album, and conclude "The Getaway proves not only that the longtime rockers still sizzle 30 years in, but also are capable of victoriously revamping their sound."^[40] Chad Childers of Loudwire gave the album a positive review praising the band for "experimenting with more sounds in the musical palette...'Sick Love' and 'Feasting on the Flowers' thrive in parts when the keys and or piano take over."^[41] Arka Sengupta of the International Business Times gave the album a mostly positive review saying "Klinghoffer has found his foothold in the band's sound with this album." However he would note "The album seems to be created with a calculated approach and with a commercial viability in mind",but would go on to say that "Even though that tarnishes the album's artistic flair a bit, its overall appeal is not reduced." ^[42] Steve Keros of Entertainment Weekly gave the album a B, saying "The Chili Peppers have taken a chill pill...ambiance is in abundance". He would praise the "upbeat" and "Prince-inspired" "Go Robot", as well the "downright dreamy" "The Longest Wave". He would conclude that "the band can't help but sound like themselves...it's the ultimate sign of their staying power".^[43]

Alex Flood of New Musical Express gave the album 3 stars out of 5 in a somewhat mixed review, saying "The problems come when they slip into habit...Flea’s bass solos still sound like the theme tune from Seinfeld, and Anthony Kiedis often spouts nonsense." However he would praise tracks such as "Dark Necessities" and "Go Robot", as well as "Dreams of a Samurai" by saying it "takes their sound in a new and exciting direction." He would conclude that "...these are well penned tunes. They just don't do anything special with them."^[44] Exclaim!'s Alex Hudson credited the band's "dabbling in new sounds" but criticized the album's lack of singles, rating the album a 6/10.^[45] Harriet Gibsone of The Guardian gave the album 3 stars out of 5 in a mixed review. She noted that "Josh Klinghoffer’s style brings out a spacier, melancholy feel that mutes the burliness of previous records", and that ""The Longest Wave" is delicate in its downcast approach...That said, clunky metaphors and couplets all too often come along and puncture the pensiveness."^[1] Consequence of Sound's Dan Caffrey gave the album a C+ in a mixed review saying the album is "haunted by Danger Mouse production that recalls the more nocturnal side of L.A...it’s the least the Red Hot Chili Peppers have sounded like the Red Hot Chili Peppers..." He would go on to add that "The Getaway starts to flounder whenever they revert back to old habits."^[31] Dan Bogosian of the A.V. Club gave the album a mixed review and C+. He called "Sick Love" "the biggest treat of the album" and said it "gives the Chili Peppers more of an appeal than they've had in years." He would go on to criticize the albums lyrics by saying "Kiedis is still more likely to rap about his sexual harassment days than anything profoundly meaningful", while adding "The strengths remain in the three musicians behind him; the weaknesses play no more of a role than they always have."^[46]

Zoe Camp of Pitchfork gave the album a 5.4 out of 10 in a mixed review. She said "The Getaway easily stands as the Peppers' lushest album to date...their sonic tropes haven't changed", however she noted that "Burton's foggy, psychedelic palette marks a drastic shift in the presentation of those motifs, widening the gulf between the band's funk-metal past and their hang-loose, jam-band present." She would go on to criticize the albums lyrics saying "By now, Peppers fans know better than to expect Pulitzer-worthy poetry from a goofy bard like Kiedis...the album’s lyrical stasis scans as disappointing, if unsurprising." She would conclude that "Were it not for these issues...The Getaway could have potentially bested By the Way as the Peppers' best work post-Californication."^[47] In a mostly negative review, Lauren Murphy of The Irish Times gave the album 2 stars out of 5. She would say "...it sounds like a Red Hot Chili Peppers album, with the customary taut shuck of guitars, ostentatious basslines a-plenty, and Kiedis’s spitfire vocals...The vibrant 'Feasting on the Flowers' is better, changing the lazy formula that permeates the track listing, but overall a vague sense of ridiculousness is never far away."^[48]

Commercial performance

The album was a worldwide commercial success, debuting at number-one in several countries including Australia, Austria, Belgium (Flanders), Belgium (Wallonia), Ireland, Italy, Switzerland, Netherlands and New Zealand and debuted in the top ten in Canada, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Finland, France, Greece, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, United Kingdom and United States.^[49]

In its home country of United States, The Getaway debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, with 118,000 equivalent album units, behind Drake's Views.^[50] The Getaway was the number one album in Overall Album Sales, Digital Album Sales, Rock Albums and Alternative Albums in its debut in the United States.^[51] It marked the group's seventh straight album to make its debut within the top four positions on the chart in the past 25 years dating back to 1991's Blood Sugar Sex Magik.^[50] In its second week, The Getaway fell to number nine on the Billboard 200, earning 28,000 units (down 76 percent).^[52]

In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart selling 40,000, behind Radiohead's A Moon Shaped Pool.^[53]

The Getaway has sold over one million copies worldwide.^[54]

Tour

Promotional poster for the band's 2016 shows at the Reading Festival and Leeds Festival

The world tour to support the album began in June 2016 in Europe with a festival tour. The band's headlining tour to support the album will begin in September 2016 and continue into 2016. "Dark Necessities", "Go Robot", "Sick Love" and "This Ticonderoga" made their live debuts in May 2016. "The Getaway" had actually been teased during their performances of "Give It Away" at Ace Hotel for the Feel The Bern Benefit Concert in Los Angeles, CA in February 5, 2016, and at Super Bowl 50 party in San Francisco, CA back in February 2016, however, it went unknown until the band released the song on May 26, 2016. The song would first be performed in its entirety on May 29, 2016. "We Turn Red" became the sixth song from the album to be performed live making its debut on June 10, 2016. "The Longest Wave" made its live debut on June 14, 2016 at a promotional show in Paris. "Detroit" made its live debut on June 29, 2016 at the Roskilde Festival. On July 1, 2016, the Live In Paris EP was released exclusively through the music streaming website Deezer. It features five songs from the band's June 14, 2016 performance in Paris. "Goodbye Angels" made its live debut on July 10, 2016. "Dreams of a Samurai" made its live debut on July 24, 2016 at the Fuji Rock Festival in Japan. "Feasting on the Flowers" premiered in Oslo, Norway on September 8, 2016.^[55] To date, all but two songs from The Getaway, "Encore" (which according to the band has been rehearsed) and "The Hunter", have been performed live.

Track listing

All tracks written by Anthony Kiedis, Flea, Chad Smith & Josh Klinghoffer, except where noted. 

The band released a version of the album on 180 gram vinyl that was foil stamped and limited to 5,000 copies worldwide. The packages, which are webstore exclusives, also included "Dark Necessities" on cassette single and a 24" x 24" lithograph with extended artwork. Those who pre-ordered the album received a free download of the first single, "Dark Necessities", the title track, "The Getaway" and "We Turn Red".^[56] The album will also be released on limited edition pink vinyl on September 27, 2016 as part of 10 Bands 1 Cause that will donate all sales of the album to Gilda's Club NYC, an organization that provides community support for both those diagnosed with cancer and their caretakers. It is named after comedian Gilda Radner.^[57]

Personnel

Red Hot Chili Peppers

• Flea – bass (1-11, 13), piano, backing vocals, trumpet (12)
• Anthony Kiedis – lead vocals
• Josh Klinghoffer – guitars, backing vocals, bass (12), piano
• Chad Smith – drums, percussion

Additional musicians^[58]

• Brian ‘Danger Mouse’ Burton — mellotron (3), organ (8), synthesizers on tracks (1, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 13)
• Elton John – piano (6)
• Mauro Refosco — percussion (6, 7)
• Anna Waronker — additional vocals (1)
• Beverley Chitwood — vocal solo (13)

All strings arranged and conducted by Daniele Luppi

• Score preparation by Jeremy Levy
• String quartet on (2), (4), (10), (11) and (12) was contracted by Chris Tedesco, and includes:
• Peter Kent — 1st violin
• Sharon Jackson — 2nd violin
• Briana Bandy — viola
• Armen Ksajikian — cello

Vocal Choir on (5), (12) and (13) was contracted by SJ Hasman, and includes:

• Beverley Chitwood, Alexx Daye, David Loucks, Kennya Ramsey, Matthew Selby, SJ Hasman, Loren Smith, and Gregory Whipple

Recording personnel

• Danger Mouse – production
• Nigel Godrich – mixing engineer and additional programming (Conway Recording Studios in Hollywood, CA)
• Stephen Marcussen – mastering
• John Armstrong — mix assistant
• Samuel Petts-Davies — mix engineering
• Kennie Takahasi — recorded by
• Todd Monfalcone — assistant engineering
• Andrew Scheps, Chris Warren, Greg Fidelman — pre-production engineers (The Boat Studio in Los Angeles and Greenwater in Malibu, California)

Art direction

• Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Kevin Peterson — cover artwork
• Alex Tenta — design and layout
• Steve Keros — photos

Charts

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/Sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[88]	Gold	7,500*
Canada (Music Canada)[89]	Gold	40,000^
France (SNEP)[90]	Gold	50,000*
Hungary (MAHASZ)[91]	Platinum	6,000^
Italy (FIMI)[92]	Gold	25,000*
Poland (ZPAV)[93]	Gold	10,000*
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[94]	Gold	10,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[95]	Gold	100,000^
Australia (ARIA)[96]	Gold	35,000^
United States (RIAA)[97]	Gold	500,000
Summaries
Worldwide		1,029,000[54]
*sales figures based on certification alone ^shipments figures based on certification alone

https://sites.google.com/site/rhcpsessions/home/album-sales

References