At the onset of the 1990s, there were few bands as powerful and provocative as Jane’s Addiction had become. After forming in 1985, they quickly rose through the Los Angeles club scene with their unique hybrid of alt-metal and atmospheric psychedelic rock, as demonstrated on their earliest singles, “Jane Says” and “Mountain Song.” By the start of the next decade, Jane’s Addiction’s esoteric sound and countercultural image had made them one of the biggest bands on the planet, and they had massive hits with “Stop!,” “Been Caught Stealing,” and “Classic Girl,” all drawn from their groundbreaking 1990 album Ritual de lo Habitual. A year later, the band’s visionary frontman Perry Farrell created Lollapalooza, a festival that was immediately praised for being on the vanguard of the alternative rock scene.
Yet Jane’s Addiction’s members found that even this level of fame and fortune couldn’t stop them from having tensions within the band, and they broke up in 1991. Since then, they’ve has reformed and gone dormant several times, with numerous lineup changes. Now, Jane’s Addiction is back once more—but this time it’s especially significant, because when they kick off their tour in Las Vegas on August 9 with Love and Rockets, it’ll be the first time since 2008 that all of the original band members are in the lineup: vocalist Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, bassist Eric Avery, and drummer Stephen Perkins.
There’s also new music from the band: the edgy single “Imminent Redemption” was just released in late July, marking the first time this lineup has recorded together since Ritual. And it is, as Farrell tells me, a kind of mission statement for his vision of how the world will soon be redeemed. Learn more in our conversation below.
What’s it like to have the classic Jane’s Addiction lineup back together?
I’m just happy that Dave [Navarro] is back. He’s fought really, really hard to come back, and he’s playing better than ever. He looks great. And we have a new type of friendship. Believe it or not, we didn’t used to like each other—too many cocks in the hen house. But now we’ve both settled down, and we both realized we’ve got work to do.
The world is going into an incredibly weird time. And sometimes I feel like we’re living in a curse. The world has become, all of a sudden, very, very difficult. And it’s a test. It’s kind of like, “Let’s just burn everything down, because it’s just a screwed up world.” But I feel that, at the same time, we’re living in the era of redemption. I really believe that we’re going to see wonders. Signs and wonders are going to have to happen now. I think it’s going to be a wild ride, and if I was one of those that wants to be a help, I’d want to be a musician. I’d want to be an artist, because I believe I can get my point across.
Is that what you’re trying to say with “Imminent Redemption”?
Yes, that’s exactly what it’s about. I study mysticism, and the great mystics are calling this period “the era of redemption.” And so if you believe in the prophecy, then you’ve got to believe in everything—you’ve got to believe in God, and you’ve got to believe that we’ll be redeemed. That’s how I live my life. And that’s what the song is about.
Jane’s Addiction / photo by Daniel Cavazos
What do you think it is about your music that’s connected so strongly with fans for the past three decades?
I see a world that’s kind of going nuts, and then most people, [when] I talk with them, it doesn’t matter who they are, but we all sit down in the end and we agree that most of our issues in the world are a result of arrogance. You know, I see the world kind of upside-down to a lot of people. A lot of people say that religion has caused more wars than anything. In the end, I think that religion is going to cure everything, because I believe in God. I believe that in the end, we’ll get to know God. And I think God is just waiting for the right moment for the world to settle. We’re running into a time when we’re going to be short on water. We’re running into a time where people are just killing each other. How long is that going to last before somebody just does something about it?
“Rather than being a guy who’s putting down the other guy, I can sing a song that specifically hits their hearts and changes them. If you sing it beautifully, and listen to it, it atomically changes you.”
It sounds like, with that approach, you could’ve just as easily become a spiritual leader instead of being a musician.
I wonder if one day it’ll happen, but right now I think my best place to be is onstage and singing. I feel like the singing harmonic heals people. So rather than being a guy who’s yelling at the other guy and putting down the other guy—I think that’s horrible behavior—I can sing a song that specifically hits their hearts and changes them. As I get older, I look forward to that. And writing just the right words—there’s so many beautiful things to learn about. And if you sing it beautifully, and listen to it, it atomically changes you.
Jane’s Addiction at Lollapalooza / photo by James Richards IV
How did you decide on Love and Rockets to co-headline this tour with Jane’s Addiction?
There aren’t as many choices, so it almost has to be a “can’t go wrong” lineup. When we first started Lollapalooza, we only had around seven acts, I think. But everybody knew those seven acts, and we knew they were important. And of those seven acts, you knew probably every song. And out of every song, you probably knew every musician’s name. Any band now, tell me all their names. You see? It’s getting harder.
Any chance for a full-length Jane’s Addiction album after this?
I don’t know if I would have a full-length album with Jane’s, but I’m going to keep on writing. But we’ve got the tour. That’s the best I can tell you: we’ve got this tour. FL
