Last month, when longtime guitarist John Frusciante announced that he had quit the Red Hot Chili Peppers, it was rumoured that touring guitarist Josh Klinghoffer would be his replacement. Now, the news is official.
Although the band have yet to issue a statement, fansite Stadium-Arcadium.com managed to get in touch with Klinghoffer personally, via the webmaster of the now-defunct site Josh-Kinghoffer.net. In an email sent around to subscribers, the website revealed, "he confirmed that he is in the band earlier today [January 2]."
What's most interesting about this is that Klinghoffer and Frusciante are longtime collaborators. The two were both members of experimental outfit Ataxia, and Klinghoffer has contributed to four of Frusciante's solo releases. In 2004, the pair issued an album together, A Sphere in the Heart of Silence, that was listed under both of their names.
Whether or not this news was Frusciante's idea still remains to be seen. If so, that would mean that the whole situation is a bit like a wife leaving her husband and offering her best friend as a replacement.
Although the band have yet to issue a statement, fansite Stadium-Arcadium.com managed to get in touch with Klinghoffer personally, via the webmaster of the now-defunct site Josh-Kinghoffer.net. In an email sent around to subscribers, the website revealed, "he confirmed that he is in the band earlier today [January 2]."
What's most interesting about this is that Klinghoffer and Frusciante are longtime collaborators. The two were both members of experimental outfit Ataxia, and Klinghoffer has contributed to four of Frusciante's solo releases. In 2004, the pair issued an album together, A Sphere in the Heart of Silence, that was listed under both of their names.
Whether or not this news was Frusciante's idea still remains to be seen. If so, that would mean that the whole situation is a bit like a wife leaving her husband and offering her best friend as a replacement.