Red Hot Chili Peppers: The Tragic death of Hillel Slovak
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Founding Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Hillel Slovak would die at just 26 in 1988. Prior to his death, Slovak was struggling with addiction, while on the cusp of a critical and commercial breakthrough with the band’s third album. But over three decades since his passing, Slovak would be regarded in shaping not only the band’s early musical direction, but their continued success to this day. This is his story.
Hillel Slovak was born on April 13th, 1962, in Haifa, Israel and would move to the United States with his family, initially to Queens, New York and then settling in Los Angeles, California five years later. Slovak took interest in painting as a child, but focused more on music in his teens, when he got his first guitar as a bar mitzvah present. By the time he attended Fairfax Highschool, Slovak befriended Michael Balzary, better known as Flea, and drummer Jack Irons, both of whom would become his future bandmates. In the meantime, Slovak found his footing as a hard rock and metal-based lead guitarist, taking note from Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, and Kiss. He’d form his first band in the late 70s with friends from school - Irons would be on drums, Alain Johannes (alan yo-hanis) on vocals and rhythm guitar, and Todd Strassman on bass. The band started out as Chain Reaction, then as Anthem, and later, Anthym with a ‘y.’
These days, fans can now get a good idea of what Anthym sounded like, thanks to the recent discovery of a few of their demo tapes. On October 6th, 2021, Johannes, who had later achieved fame in the 90s as the frontman for the band Eleven, unveiled one of Anthym’s early demos through his Instagram page, an eight-track tape from 1979 called Paradox. On his post, he writes, “Found this cassette deep in a box…can’t believe it still kinda plays.”
Two weeks after that post, it was revealed that another Anthym demo, this time from 1980 called Forever Love, was discovered by Blast Music Management owner Aaron Jacoves, who had obtained it from Total Annihilation Studio. Between the two tapes, you can sense the fluidity in Slovak’s approach, as he moves from the straight-ahead blues rock of Black Sabbath to the arena rock of early 70s-era Rush.
By the early 80s, Anthym would compete in Battle of the Bands contests, and also manage late night gigs in the local bar scene, even though all its members weren’t of legal age. After one of those performances, Slovak met another Fairfax High student, Anthony Kiedis, in the audience, who was a budding actor at the time. Kiedis recalled the experience in his 2004 autobiography, Scar Tissue, saying,
“I usually felt like the leader in most of my relationships with kids my age…but I immediately knew that Hillel was at least my equal, and in fact knew a lot of things that I didn’t.”
“He understood a lot about music…was a great visual artist, and…had a sense of self and a calm about him that were just riveting.”
Once Kiedis was in the picture, the group became fast friends, and would bond over music and casual drug use. Kiedis acted as Anthym’s roadie, as well as their hype man for live gigs. Eventually, the band changed their name to What Is This, switched their sound from hard rock to new w
Sources:
“Interview with Hillel Slovak, Alain Johannes (What Is This).” KZfaq, 5 Oct. 2019, • Interview with Hillel ... . Accessed 6 Nov. 2021.
Kiedis, Anthony, and Larry Sloman. Scar Tissue. Hachette Books, 2004.
Mensah, Jenny. “RHCP's Flea Visits ‘Beloved Brother’ Hillel Slovak's Grave.” Radio X, Radio X, 8 Jan. 2019, www.radiox.co.uk/artists/red-....
Owen, Matt. “Alain Johannes Digs out Another Anthym Demo from 1980, Featuring Pre-Red Hot Chili Peppers Flea, Hillel Slovak and Jack Irons.” Guitarworld, Guitar World, 21 Oct. 2021, www.guitarworld.com/news/alai....
Parker, Matt. “Alain Johannes Unearths 1979 Demo of Pre-Red Hot Chili Peppers Band Anthym Featuring Flea, Hillel Slovak and Jack Irons.” Guitarworld.com, Guitar World, 8 Oct. 2021, www.guitarworld.com/news/alai....
Slovak, James. Behind the Sun: The Diary and Art of Hillel Slovak. Slim Skinny Publications, 1999.
Thompson, Dave. Spin Magazine, Aug. 1993.