janesaddiction.org

St. Paul Pioneer Press (MN)
December 1, 1990
ADDICTED TO ROCK
Author: BYLINE: Tom Moon, Knight-Ridder News Service

For Perry Farrell, steel-voiced singer/songwriter and conceptualist of the inventive hard-rock band Jane's Addiction, music is all about overcoming inhibitions - both his own and those of the audience.

"Whatever I do, I try to make it feel like it's the first time I've ever done it," he said in a recent telephone interview from his home in Los Angeles, where he was preparing for a road trip that includes a 7 p.m. concert Sunday at Minneapolis' First Avenue.

"I imagine that nobody knows me, so I do what I like. No reservations," he said. "This is a very different philosophy from the stardom thing, where once you start getting known, you somehow have this moral and social obligation to act a certain way. With me, it's always been little Perry. Nobody's gonna cast a social obligation on me. That's why I don't pay attention to the people who want to censor things."

As a result, Farrell, 31, has been able to remain focused on his music. Which, it so happens, is a good few paces ahead of most other rock efforts this year. Jane's Addiction's third album, "Ritual De Lo Habitual," the follow-up to 1988's major-label debut "Nothing's Shocking," is an ambitious marriage of high-energy grunge and impeccably clean - even thoughtful - composition.

Its nine selections crackle with mystical images and unpredictable instrumental signatures. Its rhythms surge with a purposeful (some would describe them as downright ritualistic) forward motion that's impossible to ignore. The messages of "Stop!" and "Been Caught Stealing" are funneled through concise traditional forms; other songs, most notably "Three Days," develop through sprawling multi-section suites that change tempo and mood with awesome precision.

And though the psychedelic "Ritual" has again brought the band controversy - as with "Nothing's Shocking," the cover of the new work features a Farrell nude sculpture - its makers resolve that they will never alter their musical message or its presentation.

"I'm going out of my way to turn your head," Farrell stated bluntly, saying that he is "extremely" proud of "Ritual." "I don't feel I should be persecuted because I like to give people a rise. That's the whole point of art, to create or highlight some kind of confrontation.... the status quo moves slower than me, and if I slowed down to write for the status quo, I would probably sink into anonymity."

As long as there's a Jane's Addiction, Farrell doesn't have to worry about anonymity. Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, drummer Stephen Perkins and bassist Eric A. have developed a following that is extraordinarily devoted, and much larger than this tour of theaters indicates. With virtually no radio play beyond college and alternative outlets, "Ritual" reached No. 25 on Billboard's top-album chart and has sold over 500,000 copies in 11 weeks.

In addition, demand for concert tickets far outstrips supply. According to Farrell, promoters in some cities have said that they could have added two or three shows.

"The crowds have grown double or triple since the last time," Farrell said. "The promoters were telling us to take it to an arena, but that's not where we're coming from. We want our fans to have the intimate theater experience, and we work hard to set a certain vibe that will probably not work past a certain size venue."

Farrell won't say whether rumors that there might not be a Jane's Addiction after the yearlong tour helped fuel demand. His disdain for the cut-throat music business is well-known - "the closest thing to it is World Federation wrestling," he jokes - and, though he wants to continue making music, Farrell maintains he'll consider a number of creative options when the tour ends.

These could be with or without the band, he volunteered.

"It's risky for a man to change his occupation and direction in life," Farrell said, sounding as though he was still in the throes of a decision. "But you have to stay creative and stimulated. Most people are busy but musically numb, because if you fail, you go to the bottom very fast. Rock 'n' roll people are reluctant to give up a band when they finally get it rolling, because they think that's their ticket. Luckily, I haven't made a lot of money, so nobody can bribe me with a mortgage. I don't have a single key to my name. The worst you can do to me is take away my surfboard, and that's in storage."

WHAT: Jane's Addiction
WHERE: First Avenue, 701 First Ave. N., Minneapolis
WHEN: 7 p.m. Sunday
TICKETS: Sold-out