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RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS
+ Post Malone
@ Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
29th January 2023
(Live Review)

Review by Jay Kleinschmidt

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Red Hot Chili Peppers // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Brisbane City got rocking on Sunday night. 40,000 plus fans eagerly packed into Suncorp Stadium, unperturbed of the fact of the next day being a Monday and a work day. Continuing their global stadium tour, the Red Hot Chili Peppers were joined by Post Malone, who added a diverse touch to the show – the first show of the Australian leg of the tour. From the theatrics of Post Malone, to the funky rocking energy of an aging Chili Peppers, punters weren’t disappointed as these two acts tore the house down.

Red Hot Chili Peppers have selected a diverse group of acts to join them on the various legs of their global stadium tour – from rock bands like The Strokes to rap artists like NAS. One might question whether Post Malone really fits the bill for a Chili Peppers show, but the decision ultimately proves to be the correct one. Post Malone has been going from strength to strength since the start of his career and he has a very large following in Australia. Furthermore, this allows the Chili Peppers to engage with their younger fan base – very important for a band that’s been going 40 years.

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Post Malone // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Post Malone // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Post Malone // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Post Malone absolutely had the audience in the palm of his hand. With just himself on stage, he never once looked lonely. The assistance offered by his lighting and pyrotechnics added to his aura. His antics, which included doing a shoey and smashing a guitar, only served to make the set more entertaining. He played his usual hits, which included Rockstar, but the standout track for me was Take What You Want. Being an old school metal fan, hearing a collaboration track with Ozzy Osbourne was incredibly refreshing. Adding to it was the flames that were perfectly lit onstage to look like the song is straight from hell.

Post Malone set the stage for a great night ahead. The punters came for both Post Malone and Red Hot Chili Peppers, but unfortunately quite a large number of fans were severely delayed in getting into the stadium, with a large bottleneck happening at gate A. This caused fans, who were ready to enter the stadium before Post Malone’s start time of 6:45pm, to miss nearly the first half hour of his performance. No doubt quite a few fans will have been frustrated by this experience. Nonetheless, the night wasn’t dulled by the inconvenience, and Chili Peppers fans were treated to the funky rock energy of one of the biggest rock acts of the 90s.

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Red Hot Chili Peppers // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Red Hot Chili Peppers // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Chad, Flea and John enter the stage first, with Chad starting an ad lib drum beat. Flea and John play along and showcase their fantastic jamming and improvisation skills. They seamlessly blend into their first song of the night, the highly energetic Around the World. Anthony runs onstage to join them as they smash out their first number.

The quite energetic opening was calmed down soon after with the more mellowed tracks Dani California and Scar Tissue. They played quite a number of their greatest hits this night, but this wasn’t a greatest hits concert, as they have two recent albums from 2022 with singles to promote. Tippa My Tongue and Black Summer were well received as they did their best to play a selection of older tracks and new ones. Interspersed between various songs was some clever improvising. These musicians are excellent at their craft. Many fans know the ability of Flea on the bass, but the excellent guitarwork from John often doesn’t get the praise it should, he is a seriously good guitar player.

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Red Hot Chili Peppers // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Red Hot Chili Peppers // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Older fans of the band may have loved the song choices or may have found themselves disappointed depending on which albums they liked. Naturally, the Chili Peppers favoured tracks from Californication more so than other albums. As the band have a great catalogue of hits – too many for one concert- many tracks from their breakthrough album Blood Sugar Sex Magic had to be skipped. Under the Bridge, Suck My Kiss, and the title track had to miss out, which would have disappointed older fans such as myself. But they did include the mellow I Could Have Lied, which was a trend for the night, opting for some of their more mellow songs over their more high-energy tracks. This shows where the band currently is on their journey, not quite the mosh-friendly act they were in the 90s. Although they were very energetic in sections of the show, particularly Flea and Anthony jumping around onstage, the aging fourpiece couldn’t keep up the intensity for the entire hour and a half.

They finished off the night with Soul to Squeeze and Give It Away before bidding fans a good night. It was a good night indeed. This performance, coupled with Post Malone’s set, perfectly catered to old fans and new fans alike. Red Hot Chili Peppers still show they have creative gas in the tank with two recent albums and the energy for the global tour they have been on since April last year. Good luck on the rest of the tour guys, keep having fun!

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Red Hot Chili Peppers // Photo – Tamcam Images

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Check out Tamcam Images’ full gallery of this show HERE

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Follow RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS
Instagram – Twitter – Facebook
 YouTube – Website – Press Site

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Red Hot Chili Peppers // Photo – Tamcam Images

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RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS
with POST MALONE
AUSTRALIA 2023

BRISBANE, SUNCORP STADIUM
SUNDAY, JANUARY 29

SYDNEY, ACCOR STADIUM
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2

SYDNEY, ACCOR STADIUM
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4

MELBOURNE, MARVEL STADIUM
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7

MELBOURNE, MARVEL STADIUM
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9

PERTH, OPTUS STADIUM
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 12

For complete tour, ticket and VIP Experience information, visit: livenation.com.au

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Press Release October 2022 (below) HERE

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS
add extra dates to
Australian Tour
due to overwhelming demand

Second shows confirmed for
Sydney and Melbourne

Global Stadium Tour
to visit Australia in
January and February 2023,
with POST MALONE

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AMNPLIFY – DB