Jane’s Addiction have confirmed that they will be cancelling their tour and taking a hiatus due to internal conflicts.
The legendary Los Angeles alt-rockers recently returned to their original line-up of Perry Farrell, Dave Navarro, Stephen Perkins and Eric Avery, and released their first new music together in 34 years, in the form of the single ‘Imminent Redemption’.
They then embarked on a series of UK shows together – including an intimate comeback gig at Bush Hall – before confirming details of a US tour with Love & Rockets.
However, during a recent show in Boston, tensions began to mount on stage, leading to Farrell shouting at Navarro, before bringing the show to a halt by shoving the guitarist. The fight was quickly broken up and the lights came down as a group of crew members, as well as Avery, tried to restrain Perry and take him off stage. The show was brought to an early end.
Now, after cancelling last night’s gig in Bridgeport (September 15), the band have shared an official statement with fans, confirming that the remainder of the tour has been axed while the band go on an immediate hiatus.
“To all the fans, The band have made the difficult decision to take some time away as a group. As such, they will be cancelling the remainder of the tour,” the statement read.
“Refunds for the cancelled dates will be issued at your point of purchase – or if you purchased from a third-party resale site like StubHub, SeatGeek, etc, please reach out to them direct. Thank you, Jane’s Addiction.”
The update comes after fans began speculating about the future of the group last night, when Navarro shared a cryptic post of him onstage with the caption “Goodnight”, and the members unfollowing one another on Instagram.
Navarro, Avery and Perkins have since shared another update with fans, citing the frontman’s “mental health difficulties” as the main factor for the split.
“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,” they wrote. “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.”
“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,” the update added. “Our hearts are broken. Dave, Eric and Stephen.”
Discussing the tensions between the members that led to the onstage altercation, a photographer at the show for the venue claimed that Farrell had “a huge bottle of wine with him all evening” and “Navarro and Avery kept chatting with each other the whole show and seemed angrier than normal”.
Farrell’s wife Etty Lau also weighed in on the situation and explained that “frustration had been mounting” within the band. She acknowledged that “there had been a lot of tension and animosity between the members”, which is “the magic that made the band so dynamic.”
She attributed Perry’s behaviour to him suffering from “tinnitus and a sore throat every night”, adding: “Perry’s frustration had been mounting, night after night, he felt that the stage volume had been extremely loud and his voice was being drowned out by the band.
Shortly after it kicked off, the band shared a statement online, apologising to fans for the incident.
At their recently completed UK and European tour, NME gave the band a five-star review for their gig at London’s Roundhouse.
“Now back in full swing, fan-favourites including ‘Mountain Song’, ‘Ain’t No Right’ and ‘Been Caught Stealing’ come in thick and fast, and seem to have a new lease of life that push the set to new heights,” it read.
“Not only does Navarro take every chance he gets to showcase a dizzying number of electrifying licks, but Perkins and Avery hold down the rhythm section with enough intensity to put anyone to shame — all while telepathically knowing when to toy with dynamics and take the renditions in sonic new directions.”
