Red Hot Chili Peppers, 'I'm With You'

The buzz: The 10th studio album from America’s nakedest funk-rockers is also the first to feature ninth (!) and newest guitarist Josh Klinghoffer. Klinghoffer replaces John Frusciante, the band’s longest tenured axman. But bassist Flea and singer Anthony Kiedis are the core components of the band’s sound—so no big whoop, right?

The verdict: Klinghoffer is a gifted player, but he really can’t hold a candle to Frusciante, a legit genius whose kaleidoscopic style was a near-perfect counterpoint to the fussy, funky grooves of Flea and drummer Chad Smith. Without Frusciante’s colorful riffs (not to mention his highly underrated backing vocals), “I’m With You” struggles to achieve liftoff. Only lead single “The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie” and “Did I Let You Know”—the latter spiked with trumpet and a sticky Klinghoffer solo that’s far and away his finest moment—really sound like the next chapter of the Chilis. On most of the rest of “I’m With You,” Klinghoffer sounds tentative and his bandmates sound uninspired—not quite “One Hot Minute” uninspired, but still a far cry from the funky frisson of “Blood Sugar Sex Magik” or “Californication.”

Did you know? “I’m With You” was supposedly mastered specifically with iTunes in mind—an approach the band and producer Rick Rubin are claiming is an industry first.