During a Boston show on Friday, September 13, lead vocalist Perry Farrell screamed at fans at the beginning of the song "Ocean," then turned on guitarist Dave Navarro, yelling and body-checking him, then throwing a punch. The fight was captured on video, which shows a crew member stepping up to intervene before bassist Eric Avery grabbed the vocalist from the back; it appears he got his own punch in, as well.
Farrell's wife, Etty Lau Farrell, posted the video herself, writing in the caption that the vocalist's "frustration had been mounting, night after night" because he felt "his voice was being drowned out by the band," and adding that Farrell "had been suffering from tinnitus and sore throat every night."Perry Farrell and Dave Navarro just got in a fight and the concert ended. pic.twitter.com/vCDOM0zBXG
— Rich Whitaker (@RMWhitaker) September 14, 2024
"But when the audience in the first row started complaining up to Perry cussing at him that the band was [playing] too loud and that they couldn't hear him, Perry lost it," she continued.
"Clearly there had been a lot of tension and animosity between the members," she wrote, "the magic that made the band so dynamic. Well, the dynamite was lit. Perry got up in Dave's face and body-checked him."
She added that Eric Avery won the fight "of course," writing that he "put Perry in a headlock and punched him in the stomach three times."
In the aftermath, she wrote that "Dave still looked handsome and cool in the middle of a fight. Perry was a crazed beast for the next half an hour — he finally did not calm down, but did break down and cried and cried."
Farrell told Variety in a statement: “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. Unfortunately, my breaking point resulted in inexcusable behavior, and I take full accountability for how I chose to handle the situation.”
Navarro released his own statement, signed by other bandmembers, stating: “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. 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. Our hearts are broken.”
The rest of the tour was canceled as of Monday, September 16.
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