"Unfortunately, my breaking point resulted in inexcusable behaviour": Perry Farrell apologises after violent onstage altercation

Perry Farrell onstage
Perry Farrell onstage with Jane's Addiction earlier this month (Image credit: Jeff Hahne/Getty Images)

Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell has apologised in the wake of his onstage altercation with guitarist Dave Navarro, a widely-reported fracas that has led to the cancellation of the remainder of the band's reunion tour dates.

"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 says in a statement. "Unfortunately, my breaking point resulted in inexcusable behaviour, and I take full accountability for how I chose to handle the situation."

Fan-filmed footage of the bust-up, which occurred at the Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston, MA., last Friday (September 13) shows Farrell throwing a punch at Navarro, before the pair are separated by crew members.

In the wake of the set-to, Farrell's wife Etty described her husband as a "crazed beast", and claimed that there'd been "a lot of tension and animosity between the members. 

The remaining dates on the tour were swiftly shelved, and the band announced that they would, once again, be going on hiatus.

"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, " read a shared statement issued by Navarro, bassist Eric Avery and drummer Stephen Perkins.

“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," it continued. “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. 

“Our hearts are broken. Dave, Eric and Stephen." 

Fraser Lewry

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 38 years in music industry, online for 25. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.