The Red Hot Chili Peppers (studio album)
by Red Hot Chili Peppers

If you’re a hardcore Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, listen to this — it really shows the early days of a young band that would later become huge. If you’re one of those people who only liked their big hits, don’t bother — this album goes in all directions and desperately lacks a strong single.

From SomethingSpecial 07/05/2025 11:53

The only real weak spot in their entire discography, containing a polished, radio-friendly sound that didn't quite gel with their punk aesthetic. The only times the production works is on the opener True Men Don't Kill Coyotes, that serves as a great introduction to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the song Green Heaven, which remains one of their finest moments of the 1980s.

Nevertheless, it's fascinating to look at this record not as a great piece of work but as a relic of its time, with the Chili Peppers being clear pioneers of the rap rock and funk metal sound that would take over the mainstream in the late 80s and early 90s with bands like Faith No More and Rage Against the Machine, and later bands like Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park.

From VictorVale 04/25/2022 21:05

Forte começo, já cheio de potencial! E destoando bastante do rock contemporâneo.

About what you'd expect from a group's recording debut where two members were absent pursuing a career in their more serious band.

The self-titled record is fun and funky, but not well produced and not thought out at all.

Not recommended.

Condensed to a 7" Single:
A-Side: True Men Don't Kill Coyotes
B-Side: Get Up and Jump

From Boltzmann 01/09/2020 09:34

I think this works better live, but they still sound nice and have their moments. Real punks they aren't though, they're just in it for the women.

From junodog4 07/30/2017 18:42

Even big fans of RHCP would have trouble ranking this near the top of their catelogue. Sounds like a bunch of young guys with goofy ideas getting together and rocking out. This sound needed 5 years of experience before it got good. As an additional blow, the production here is awful. Sounds tinny.

From Brandon8 10/21/2016 00:06

The first album is raw and has lots of energy. They were finding themselves here and the second album before creating their unique and original sound.

It's not bad, but not great either. It's kind of enjoyable it it's own way, but there's not to many signs to suggest a future great band is behind this record. So-so.

This is somehow worse than Freaky Styley. In terms of bands that have really made and are well known, this is probably the worst album I have heard by that level of a band

Its astonishing what they would be come from this drunken crazy party mess of an album.

Skip and Burn. Head straight to Mother's Milk and hit every album from there as they are all worth hearing at that point

Best studio album of Peppers. The slower funk songs are great, bass is super. They should play these songs in their live sets!!!