John Frusciante: Curtains : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

The most recent of a slew of albums from the Chili Peppers guitarist: Slow down, man! John Frusciante has a whole lot to sing about these days. Still riding the post-heroin-addiction wave of creativity that helped him revive Red Hot Chili Peppers, the guitarist released four solo albums and an EP in 2004. But no one -- not even Guided by Voices -- can maintain quality control at that manic rate, as suggested by Frusciante's latest disc, a spare, mostly acoustic collection of contemplative, meandering ballads. His once-erratic vocals have grown sturdier -- he now sounds more like Cat Stevens than a caterwauling homeless dude.

Despite some pretty instrumental passages, however, the sound-alike songs just aren't strong enough to justify the album's bare-bones, oft-drumless arrangements. A suggestion: How about a one-disc compilation of the best of Frusciante's recent releases?