Review: Anthony Keidis and Larry Sloman - Scar Tissue

Scar Tissue reads like a crazed addict’s mission statement in a rehab meeting, though the effect is sobering.

The Red Hot Chili Pepper’s Anthony Keidis, now 5 years clear-headed, recalls the sex and drugs that has defined his life, focusing much less on the music that most would rather associate him with.

Larry Sloman’s presence as co-author is subtle, though could explain Keidis’ ability to recall the smallest trivial details – with the damage done to his body; it’s amazing he remembers anything at all.

The confessions of an addicted and troubled mind do strike a chord though, as Keidis travels from the excitement of his drug highs to the hells of coming down, and the relapses in between.

Though one can’t help but notice a hint of excitement in the narrator’s tone as he reminisces getting high; perhaps still musing between sobriety and chemical enlightenment?

Altogether, Scar Tissue is an honest, moving memoir of recovery, redemption, and a troubled musician’s life in the spotlight.

- 3 and half stars

(Originally published in the Blue Mountains Gazette Review May/June 2005)