The Red Hot Chili Peppers' U.S. tour dates -- their first live onslaught of this level since the 2007 Stadium Arcadium jaunt -- begin right here in South Florida this coming January.
Aside from a big, blistering set of new tunes from I'm With You, this tour will introduce RHCP's recently installed eighth (or ninth) lead guitarist Josh Klinghoffer on a grand scale. Klinghoffer was a touring guitarist with the band on the 2007 trek, and is a personal buddy of the exiting axeman John Frusciante. He's also 17 years Anthony Kiedis' junior. So, even if Frusciante is cool with the new situation, Klinghoffer is the guy with the most to prove.
Now, the National Anthem is far from the definitive piece of music to determine a guy's musical mettle, but we played this version for a team of expert(s) -- AKA, a known Frusciante-phile -- and got the response "dumpy" regarding Klinghoffer's guitar work.
Still, here at County Grind, we root for the underdog! (Plus, Klinghoffer has had a hand in the studio with L.A.'s premiere female indie rock group Warpaint.) Let's roll out those dates.
Red Hot Chili Peppers' I'm With You World Tour (U.S. Dates):
01/20 Sunrise, FL Bank Atlantic Center
01/21 Orlando, FL Amway Arena
01/23 St. Petersburg, FL St. Pete Times Forum
01/25 Charlotte, NC Time Warner Cable Arena
01/27 Raleigh, NC RBC Center
01/28 Columbia, SC ColonialLife Arena
01/30 Duluth, GA Gwinnett Arena
01/31 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
02/03 Memphis, TN FedEx Forum
02/04 New Orleans, LA New Orleans Arena
03/06 San Antonio, TX AT&T Center
03/08 Houston, TX Toyota Center
03/09 Dallas, TX American Airlines Arena (*on sale 12/9)
03/13 Tulsa, OK BOK Arena
03/15 Oklahoma City, OK Chesapeake Energy
03/16 Little Rock, AR Verizon Center
Red Hot Chili Peppers. 8 p.m. Friday, January 20 at BankAtlantic Center, 1 Panther Parkway, Sunrise. Tickets cost $39 to $59, and go on sale at 10 a.m. December 10 (presale begins December 8 at 10 a.m.). Click here.
Follow County Grind on Facebook and Twitter: @CountyGrind.
