Former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer is not a fan of the music they’ve made since he left the rock band.
The 43-year-old musician was in the group from 2009 to 2019 and recorded two albums ‘I’m with You’ and ‘The Getaway’, plus the B-sides compilation ‘I’m Beside You’ with them. He replaced John Frusciante, who has since returned.
And Josh has now confessed that he thinks they were making “cooler music” when he was in the band and admitted he was “shocked” by their latest album, 2022’s ‘Return Of The Dream Canteen’, which he was unable to finish, and didn’t think much of ‘Unlimited Love’, which was also released last year.
Appearing on the Brazilian podcast ‘5 Notas’, Josh said: “I don’t think I finished [listening to] the second [2022 album, ‘Return Of The Dream Canteen’].
“I was trying to cram it in once before leaving on a plane, and I got as far as maybe the ninth song, and I don’t think I listened to the rest.”
He continued: “It’s tough [listening to their new music], only because I honestly think we were doing cooler music.
“I never want to sound negative about anyone doing music, but I was shocked when I heard their new record.”
Josh and John, 53, teamed up on the joint album ‘A Sphere In The Heart Of Silence’ back in 2004, and while they aren’t as close, the former wouldn’t rule out working together again.
He said: “I feel like it would be fun to play some of those songs again, or play them live – we never played them live.”
Bassist Flea, 60, previously hinted at artistic differences with Josh.
He told NME: “It was a big shift for us, parting ways with Josh.
“He’s been with us for 10 years, and it was an emotionally difficult thing to do. Not only was he a great musician, he was also a thoughtful, supportive team player – a communally-minded, kind and intelligent person.”
He added: “But artistically, in terms of being able to speak the same [musical] language, it was easier working with John. Getting back into a room and starting to play and letting the thing unfold … was really exciting.”