Perry Farrell of Jane's Addiction has apologised for the physical altercation that resulted in the cancellation of the remaining dates. Here he is pictured performing at Pier 17 Rooftop on September 10. Photo / Getty Images
Perry Farrell of Jane's Addiction has apologised for the physical altercation that resulted in the cancellation of the remaining dates. Here he is pictured performing at Pier 17 Rooftop on September 10. Photo / Getty Images
The alt-rock outfit’s original lineup - Farrell, Navarro, Eric Avery, and Stephen Perkins - reunited earlier this year for the first time since 2010, embarking on a European tour and later announcing a US leg. However, cracks reportedly began to show during the band’s performance in New York City last week, with the tension later culminating in Farrell, 65, shoving and punching Navarro, 57, on-stage at Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston on September 13.
According to footage of the altercation, bassist Avery then attempted to restrain Farrell, with two other crew members jumping in to help drag the visibly enraged singer off-stage. The concert was cut short, with the band later confirming its Connecticut gig on Sunday would be cancelled as video of the melee spread like wildfire on social media. At the time, there was no mention as to whether the rest of the 14 dates would proceed.
On Monday (local time), however, the band issued a statement confirming the remainder of the tour would be cancelled.
“The band have made the difficult decision to take some time away as a group,” the statement read on Instagram. “As such, they will be cancelling the remainder of the tour.”
Refunds will be issued at the point of purchase, the band added, “or if you purchased from a third-party resale site like StubHub, SeatGeek, etc, please reach out to them direct.” The comments on the post have been disabled.
While the announcement did not lay blame for the cancellations, Navarro pointed a finger squarely at Farrell in his own statement to social media, claiming the 65-year-old’s “mental health difficulties” and “continuing patter of behaviour” had led to the group’s combustion.
“Due to a continuing pattern of behaviour and the mental health difficulties of our singer Perry Farrell, we have come to the conclusion that we have no choice but to discontinue the current US tour. Our concern for his personal health and safety as well as our own has left us no alternative. We hope that he will find the help he needs,” Navarro wrote in a statement that was co-signed by Avery and Perkins.
“We deeply regret that we are not able to come through for all our fans who have already bought tickets. We can see no solution that would either ensure a safe environment on stage or reliably allow us to deliver a great performance on a nightly basis.
Following the band’s announcement, Farrell issued a separate statement to his Instagram Story and to local media, in which he apologised to his band mates - “especially Dave Navarro” - for his “inexcusable behaviour”.
“This weekend has been incredibly difficult and after having the time and space to reflect, it is only right that I apologise to my bandmates, especially Dave Navarro, fans, family and friends for my actions during Friday’s show,” Farrell said.
“Unfortunately, my breaking point resulted in inexcusable behaviour, and I take full accountability for how I chose to handle the situation.”
Farrell’s public apology follows a “firsthand account” shared by his wife, Etty Lau Farrell, on Instagram, in which she claimed that her husband - who was suffering from a sore throat and tinnitus - had become frustrated when the band started their song Ocean Size “before [he] was ready.”
“Clearly there had been a lot of tension and animosity between the members,” she wrote. “The magic that made the band so dynamic. Well, the dynamite was lit. Perry got up in Dave’s face and body checked him.
“Perry’s frustration had been mounting, night after night, he felt that the stage volume had been extremely loud and [that] his voice was being drowned out by the band... By the end of the song, he wasn’t singing, he was screaming just to be heard.”
She then alleged that Avery “either didn’t understand what de-escalation meant or took advantage of the situation” and took “a few cheap shots” at her husband, adding, “[He] put Perry in a headlock and punched him in the stomach three times.”
“Perry was a crazed beast for the next half an hour - he finally did not calm down, but did break down and cried and cried,” she said.
Etty Lau later admitted that Farrell was “spinning out”, adding: “The most devastating [mental] health of all with him since 97 [when the two first began their relationship].”
Dave Navarro (left) and Perry Farrell (right) of Jane's Addiction perform at Red Hat Amphitheatre on September 3, in Raleigh, North Carolina. Photo / Getty Images
Fifteen shows have been cancelled in total, less than a month after Live Nation announced that seven additional dates were being added to the tour, which also featured supporting act Love & Rockets. The final show was set to take place on October 16 at YouTube Theatre in Los Angeles, where the band played one date earlier this year. Including the ill-fated gig at Boston’s Leader Bank Pavilion on Friday, the four-piece performed 17 shows in total.
Footage of the scene in Boston showed Navarro, Avery and Perkins embracing after Farrell was forcibly removed. The members then made sentimental gestures to the cheering audience before giving the peace sign and exiting the stage.
According to Variety, more than one review of Jane’s Addiction concerts this month had used the word “chugging” in relation to Farrell’s wine consumption on stage.
During the first of two gigs at Pier 17 in New York City on September 10, Farrell had told the audience that “something’s wrong with my voice,” adding, “I just can’t get the notes out all of a sudden,” according to reports.
Jane’s Addiction, who formed in Los Angeles in 1985, first split in 1991 after releasing the albums Nothing’s Shocking and Ritual de lo Habitual. Navarro went on to appear on one Red Hot Chili Peppers’ album, 1995′s One Hot Minute, but was fired from the band due to a drug relapse.
