Ataxia was a short-lived American experimental rock band formed in 2004 by guitarist John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Mars Volta), bassistJoe Lally (Fugazi) and drummer Josh Klinghoffer (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dot Hacker, The Bicycle Thief).
Ataxia wrote and recorded songs for two weeks, and the material was separated into two albums: Automatic Writing (2004) and AW II (2007). The songs all feature a ground-bass line with the guitar overlaying different motifs and long developments. In March 2008, Lally described the band's writing process:[1]
| “ | The songs would be initiated by me settling into a bass line. While the bass line was forming Josh would be playing and John would start to do something - with a few minutes, with a beat, I’d just keep going. There were no thoughts to it being the 'end product', a recording, but it led to that. The goal was just to see how quickly we could work music into place - I think it was a really interesting exercise for [Frusciante and Klinghoffer]. [...] The project really was just to be a show, not a recording, and no one would ever hear it again. | ” |
Ataxia performed two shows, both at the Knitting Factory in Los Angeles, on February 2 and February 3, 2004. Following this, the group disbanded. Josh Klinghoffer continues to work with Frusciante on his solo projects. Josh took John's place as the Red Hot Chili Peppers guitar player when John quit during the RHCP hiatus.
John Anthony Frusciante
i/fruːˈʃɑːnteɪ/ (Italian pronunciation: [fruʃˈʃante]; born March 5, 1970) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, record and film producer. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, with whom he recorded five studio albums. Frusciante has an active solo career, having released ten albums under his own name, as well as two with Josh Klinghoffer and Joe Lally as Ataxia. His solo recordings include elements ranging from experimental rock and ambient music to New Wave and electronica. Influenced by guitarists of various genres, Frusciante emphasizes melody and emotion in his guitar playing, and favors vintage guitars and analog recording techniques.
