If you've got some free time on your hands, then here's a little game you could play. You need one friend (preferably with absolutely no musical knowledge whatsoever), copies of 'Blood Sugar Sex Magik' and 'By the Way', a CD player and a working electricity supply.

The game is simple: you play your aforementioned friend both albums. It is his/her job to decide whether or not both albums were made by the same band. Believe me, it's not as easy as it sounds. Can the band who pioneered the 'socks on cocks' movement and inspired the whole of the now dire nu-metal scene really have created this melodic selection of tunes perfect for summer? Um, yes, actually.

Okay, there are giveaways: Anthony Kiedis still sounds like Anthony Kiedis, and the unmistakeable sound of John Frusciante's guitar is still, well, unmistakeable. But with harmonies like the Beach Boys at their best, and a more positive, mature outlook on life, this album finally lives up to all that was promised by their previous effort 'Californication'.

This is their most consistent album to date, with every song boasting a memorable chorus and a hook which unfailingly draws the listener in. There are ballads ('I Could Die For You' and 'Tear'), the compulsory drug tune ('This is the Place') and the perhaps inevitable 'we aren't that serious' track ('Cabron'): what more could you want from them? There isn't a bad track on here, an impressive feat for an album which stretches to well over an hour.

If you've got some free time on your hands, forget your musically-challenged friend. Instead, get a copy of 'By the Way' and cruise the town in your open-topped convertible on a sunny day with friends. This is what summer is all about.