In September of last year, Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell attacked guitarist Dave Navarro onstage during a concert in Boston. The band cut short the show and cancelled the remaining dates of a planned reunion tour of North America. At the time, Farrell issued an apology and all four members said they “had made the difficult decision to take some time away as a group.” Now, he and Jane’s Addiction have shared additional statements addressing the incident and confirming his departure from the band. Read both in full below.
“Jane’s Addiction has been at the center of my life for decades,” Farrell wrote in a joint Instagram post with the band. “The band, the songs, the patrons and the impact that we’ve had on music and culture mean more to me than any words I could ever possibly write down. My aim has always been to give our audience the best possible show, something real, honest and positive. In Boston, we fell short of that, and I’m truly sorry to everyone who was impacted.”
In their own post, the remaining members of Jane’s Addiction—Navarro, bassist Eric Avery, and drummer Stephen Perkins—shared, “we unilaterally determined it would be best to not continue the tour and made inaccurate statements about Perry’s mental health which we regret.” They added, “We now look forward to the future as we embark on our separate musical and creative endeavors.”
Jane’s Addiction’s original lineup reunited in 2024 with a new song, “Imminent Redemption.” A second new song, “True Love,” arrived just a couple of days after the Boston incident. Earlier this year, Navarro, Avery, and Perkins sued Farrell, claiming a loss of $10 million in potential earnings from the cancelled reunion shows and a new album that was reportedly never completed. Farrell then countersued, alleging that his bandmates engaged in a “years-long bullying campaign” against him. Pitchfork has reached out for representatives for Jane’s Addiction to confirm whether the suits will continue.
Revisit the Sunday Review of Jane’s Addiction’s 1988 album Nothing’s Shocking.
Perry Farrell:
To everyone in Boston, and around the world.
I’d like to address what happened on stage last year. I’ve reflected on it and know I didn’t handle myself the way I should have. I apologize to our patrons and my bandmates for losing my temper and for disrupting the show.