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30th October 2004, Chicago Tribune
thanks to Sherri for typing it out

Anthony Kiedis, singer for the multiplatinum funk-rock Red Hot Chili Peppers, released his epic autobiography, "Scar Tissue," this month. It's full of the type of wild stories -- watching his father deal coke to football players as a kid, trading in a guitar signed by all of the Rolling Stones for a tiny bit of heroin during a bender -- that one would expect from a member of one of the world's biggest and baddest bands.

It's also the bold move you would expect from the charismatic frontman of a band. But while this book reinforces Kiedis' status as the alpha member of group, another Chili Pepper, the shy, introspective guitarist John Frusciante, is quietly realizing an ambitious solo project. Frusciante is releasing a series of six albums in six months that showcases his incredible fluency with the guitar.

"I feel strongly about this music, and I think there will always be people who discover it and get something out of it," Frusciante said. "I care about leaving a legacy of work. I am definitely not doing it the smart way if my goal was to sell records."

Frusciante has always written and recorded his own music, but it wasn't until last December, when the Chili Peppers were taking a break, that he felt he had the vision and understanding necessary to make his own album. Embarking on a flurry of recording sessions that ended in May, the guitarist and a rotating cast of collaborators created an eclectic body of work to be released on the Record Collection label.

"People will be amazed that this much stuff is coming out from somebody who's playing with a major band," said Joe Lally, a bassist with Fugazi who contributed to the project.

Mellow rock collection

The first album, "Will to Death," a soulful collection of spacious, mellow rock songs recorded with drummer Josh Klinghoffer, was released in June. Next came "Automatic Writing," a swirling mix of feedback and mechanical, Joy Division-like bass lines credited to the group Ataxia.

Fugazi member Ian MacKaye produced the next release, the "DC" EP. Frusciante, a huge devotee of Fugazi, lived out the ultimate fan fantasy during recording sessions and used the amp featured on the cover of the band's "Red Medicine" album. The latest, "Inside of Emptiness" came out Oct. 26 and again features Klinghoffer.

"It's music that's coming from a very small place inside me," said Frusciante. "And my heart goes into everything that I do."

Darrin Fox, associate editor of Guitar Player magazine, says although the breadth of this project might suggest otherwise, Frusciante isn't just dabbling in different genres.

"He's really an accomplished musician, so I don't think it sounds like a clash of completely different styles," he said.

The series will conclude later this year with "Sphere in the Heart of Silence," a mostly electronic album that features collaborations with Klinghoffer and a few solo piano pieces that came out last week, and "Curtains," an album of acoustic music partially inspired by Cat Stevens that's scheduled for a Jan. 25 release.

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