Perry Farrell is taking a step back from music to “heal” following his violent outburst during a Jane’s Addiction concert.
On Saturday (Sept. 21), the 65-year-old singer’s wife, Etty Lau Farrell, shared an update on her husband following his onstage altercation with guitarist Dave Navarro during the rock band’s concert in Boston on Sept. 13.
“As you know, Perry is the gentlest of souls. We are equally astonished at Perry’s physical outburst as you are – but you must know that Perry must had been pushed to his absolute limit.. to that end we apologize,” Etty Lau wrote on Instagram. “We are taking a bit of time to ourselves, to reflect and to heal. Perry already has appointments with a otolaryngologist and a neurologist. If you know and love Perry well, you know there’s no need for me to address the other false narratives. Our souls know.”
A day after the onstage meltdown, Etty Lau attempted to provide context and background on what precipitated the incident.
“Clearly there had been a lot of tension and animosity between the members.. the magic that made the band so dynamic. Well, the dynamite was lit,” she wrote on Instagram. “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. Perry had been suffering from tinnitus and a sore throat every night. But when the audience in the first row, started complaining up to Perry cussing at him that the band was planning too loud and that they couldn’t hear him, Perry lost it.”
Following the shocking incident, Navarro and Jane’s Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins and bassist Eric Avery issued a joint statement apologizing to fans for the disturbing scene that led to the cancellation of the reunited lineup’s first tour in 14 years as well as the announcement of an indefinite hiatus.
“Due to a continuing pattern of behavior 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,” the trio wrote on Instagram.
Farrell also apologized to his bandmates in a statement first shared with Billboard.
“This weekend has been incredibly difficult and after having the time and space to reflect, it is only right that I apologize to my bandmates, especially Dave Navarro, fans, family and friends for my actions during Friday’s show,” Farrell said. “Unfortunately, my breaking point resulted in inexcusable behavior, and I take full accountability for how I chose to handle the situation.”
In fan video of the moment, an agitated Farrell is seen lunging at Navarro and throwing a shoulder into his bandmate, then punching the shocked-looking guitarist in the chest before the men are separated and Farrell is dragged off stage.
See Etty Lau Farrell’s post on Instagram below.