"Otherside" is a song by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. It was released as the third single from their seventh studio album, '' Californication'' (1999), and confronts the battles

addicts Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use oft ...

have with their prior addictions. The track was released in Australia and New Zealand in 1999 and was given an international release in January of the following year. The single was highly successful, peaking at number 14 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the fourth-highest peak for the band, and number one on the ''Billboard''

Alternative Songs Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...

chart, which was, at the time, the fifth for the band. The song remained at number one on this chart for 13 consecutive weeks, one of the longest runs at the top of that chart. It was also a big success in Iceland, where it became the second single from the album to reach number one, and in New Zealand, where it charted at number five. "Otherside" refers to former band member Hillel Slovak, who died of a heroin overdose in 1988.

Music video

The video was directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris in a black-and-white/ monochrome Gothic style similar to

Robert Wiene Robert Wiene (; 27 April 1873 – 17 July 1938) was a film director of the silent era of German cinema. He is particularly known for directing the German silent film ''The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' and a succession of other German Expressionism, ...

's ''

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari ''The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (german: Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari) is a 1920 German silent horror film, directed by Robert Wiene and written by Hans Janowitz and Carl Mayer. Considered the quintessential work of German Expressionist cinema, ...

'', all influenced by German Expressionist art. Elements of

Cubism Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture. In Cubist artwork, objects are analyzed, broken up and reassemble ...

and work by the graphic artist

M. C. Escher Maurits Cornelis Escher (; 17 June 1898 – 27 March 1972) was a Dutch graphic artist who made mathematically inspired woodcuts, lithographs, and mezzotints. Despite wide popular interest, Escher was for most of his life neglected in t ...

are also seen in the video. A cartoonish story line is juxtaposed upon the song; that of a young man's dream sequence. The band members appear dressed in black in unusual locations, with props intended to appear as surreal instruments. Throughout the video

Anthony Kiedis Anthony Kiedis ( ; born November 1, 1962) is an American singer and songwriter. He is a founding member and lead vocalist of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Kiedis and his fellow band members were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fa ...

with short, platinum hair is seen in a castle tower. His stage persona is different and quite dark when compared to his more energetic performances in other videos. John Frusciante plays a rope down a long corridor as if a guitar. Flea is hanging on high voltage wires and playing them as if they were a bass guitar, and Chad Smith is up on a tower with a rotating medieval clock that serves as his drum kit. Jonathan Dayton: "We did look at Caligari, and we looked at a lot of German Expressionist film. But it was also very important to avoid 'Caligari.' It was both inspiration and something to work around, because it has such a strong, specific style, and there have been other videos that have completely ripped it off." Valerie Faris: "We didn't look at 'Calagari' all that much, really. We did, but then we just left it. We did look at a lot of the works of the futurist artists from the '30s, and the illustrations of the

surrealists Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...

and from cubism. We were inspired more by paintings than by films…"

Reception

"Otherside" is widely considered to be one of the band's best songs. In 2021, '' Kerrang'' ranked the song number five on their list of the 20 greatest Red Hot Chili Peppers songs, and in 2022, '' Rolling Stone'' ranked the song number six on their list of the 40 greatest Red Hot Chili Peppers songs.

Live performances

"Otherside" has remained a constant staple on the band's tours since 1999, making it one of their top ten most performed songs.

Remixes

In 2009, Seattle

producer Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

Ryan Lewis sampled the song as a backdrop for his song of the same name with the rapper Macklemore. The song depicted Macklemore's own personal struggles as well as the wider problems that the hip hop community has with

drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

. In 2010, house duo Third Party made an unofficial remix of the song. The remix garnered considerable attention, but was never released. It was made official and released by Warner Records in 2013. In 2015 British DJ Paul Oakenfold released a Future House remix released also by Warner Records, another version was released by Italian DJ Benny Benassi alongside Oakenfold.

Track listings

CD single (2000) # "Otherside" (album) – 4:16 # "How Strong" (previously unreleased)– 4:43 CD version 2 (2000) # "Otherside" (album) – 4:16 # "My Lovely Man" (live) – 5:18 # " Around the World" (music video) CD version 3 ustralian release(2000) # "Otherside" (album) – 4:16 # "How Strong" (previously unreleased) – 4:46 # "My Lovely Man" (live) – 5:18 # "Road Trippin'" (without strings) – 3:25 # " Scar Tissue" (music video) # "Around the World" (music video) CD version 4 (2000) # "Otherside" (album) – 4:16 # "How Strong" (previously unreleased) – 4:43 # "My Lovely Man" (live) – 5:18 # "Road Trippin'" (without strings) – 3:25 CD version 5 (2000) # "Otherside" (album) – 4:16 # "How Strong" (previously unreleased) – 4:43 # "

Road Trippin' "Road Trippin" is a song by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers from their seventh studio album, ''Californication'' (1999). It was released as the album's fifth and final single in December 2000. Background The single was released only ...

" (without strings) – 3:25 # "Otherside" (music video) Cassette version S(1999) # "Otherside" (album) - 4:16 # "How Strong" (previously unreleased) – 4:43

Personnel

Red Hot Chili Peppers *

– lead vocals * John Frusciante – guitar, backing vocals * Flea – bass * Chad Smith – drums,

shaker Shaker or Shakers may refer to: Religious groups * Shakers, a historically significant Christian sect * Indian Shakers, a smaller Christian denomination Objects and instruments * Shaker (musical instrument), an indirect struck idiophone * Cock ...

, cowbell

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1999 songs 1999 singles Music videos directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris Number-one singles in Iceland Red Hot Chili Peppers songs Song recordings produced by Rick Rubin Songs about suicide Commemoration songs Songs written by Anthony Kiedis Songs written by Chad Smith Songs written by Flea (musician) Songs written by John Frusciante Warner Records singles