Shocking details emerge over what happened backstage after Jane's Addiction frontman had fight with guitarist mid-song
Details of what happened after the controversial on-stage bust-up between the Jane's Addiction lead singer and guitarist have finally be revealed.
On 13 September, the rock band were in the middle of a gig at the Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston, US, when front man Perry Farrell swung at bandmate Dave Navarro before being taken away by crew members in front of a stunned crowd.
The 65-year-old's sudden burst of anger has been heavily debated on social media, and it has since been announced that the band's tour has been cancelled, while Farrell has also come out and apologised.
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He said in a statement posted on social media: “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.
"Unfortunately, my breaking point resulted in inexcusable behaviour, and I take full accountability for how I chose to handle the situation.”
A technician for Jane's Addiction has recently appeared on a podcast of all places to speak about the fight that occurred during the show, and how it continued even after they were escorted off stage.
In a new episode of Rare Form Radio, which is hosted by Jane's Addiction's guitar and bass technician of 17 years, Dan Cleary, he revealed all of the juicy details of what unfolded backstage.
Unfortunately for fans of the group, Cleary stated that the 'band is over' following the physical altercation, as he was one of the crew on-stage trying to restrain the lead singer.
Joined on the podcast by Navarro's best friend, Todd Newman, the pair ran through events on that fateful Friday night through audio clips.
Before anything happened, they noted that Farrell was singing out of sync with the band, with audio from the fight also caught, as the frontman told his wife Etty Lay Farrell after being dragged backstage that his bandmates were 'trying to f*** my show up.'
His target, Navarro, then could be heard asking: "What the f*** was that, you motherf*****?"
Backstage however, the fight between the two took place, as Cleary revealed: "That [punch] he actually connected, you can hear it, the right hand to the left side of Dave's face."
It was a bizarre incident, as Cleary and Newman said that his erratic behaviour could be traced back to the tour's opening show in Las Vegas, as Farrell allegedly 'quit the band', before he was convinced into performing.
Etty Lau Farrell explained following the events that 'frustration has been mounting' for her partner, as there was 'animosity' between band members.
Both Navarro and Farrell dismissed alcoholism as a cause of his outburst, despite regularly swigging a bottle of wine while on stage.
Farrell originally said that he wanted to quit after the band didn't allow him to play footage of his wife dancing with other dancers in the desert, according to Cleary, while Etty Lau broadcasted that the tour was over prior to their opening show after her husband's discontent.
But that was the turning point, as Cleary stated that 'Perry did kind of pull away' after these events, as 'it all fell apart' during the group's Boston show, leading to the full on fight that took place backstage.
An audio clip was played on the podcast of Farrell saying 'f*** these motherf******' before body-slamming Navarro, as Cleary highlighted: "I want people to understand it didn't end there [on stage]."
"Eventually Dave walks up to ask what the f*** happened, and Perry punches him again," the technician explained.
Despite this, Cleary said that he felt bad for Farrell as he had something 'going on mentally', saying that 'he looked crazed'.
"I enjoy Perry, I've had great talks with him. He sent me a beautiful text the other day- basically a 'I'll miss you' kind of text," Cleary added.
He concluded: "He's a good dude most of the time. And then there's times when it's kind of this, but we've never seen this crazed version before. Which is what makes it so scary."
Joshua Nair