Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell has sued former bandmates Dave Navarro, Eric Avery, and Stephen Perkins, just hours after the trio filed a lawsuit against him over an onstage scuffle last year. During a show at Boston’s Leader Bank Pavilion on Sept. 13, 2024, Farrell shoved Navarro near the end of his guitar solo for “Ocean Size” before Avery and crew members had to physically separate them. The band didn’t finish the concert, and audience-shot footage flooded social media feeds within minutes.
In a 30-page complaint, obtained by Rolling Stone and filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Farrell accused his ex-bandmates of “a years-long bullying campaign” against him during which they would allegedly harass him onstage and play their instruments at a “high volume so that he could not hear himself sing without blasting his own in-ear monitors at an unsafe level.” The frontman claimed that the harassment escalated at the Boston show, leading to “physical violence” by Navarro and Avery against Farrell during the performance and the assault of both Farrell and his wife, Etty Lau Farrell, backstage by Navarro.
Farrell also claimed that he was “blindsided” when the other band members cancelled the remaining reunion tour dates and broke up the band without warning or consulting with him.
“Without warning or consultation and using Perry as a scapegoat, Dave Navarro and the other band members took it upon themselves to abruptly cancel the remaining tour dates — violating contracts and disregarding all professional obligations,” Farrell’s attorney, Miles Cooley, said in a statement. “Perry was blindsided by not being allowed to vote and be heard, leaving him unable to plead his case to continue the tour for their fans.”
Cooley claimed that Navarro “intentionally and publicly blamed Perry for the canceled tour dates, effectively destroying Perry’s reputation and causing him irreparable harm. Despite this continued bullying perpetuated by Navarro, Perry’s dedication to Jane’s Addiction and the preservation of its positive impact on the music industry remains unshaken. He is actively exploring ways to address the situation and ensure accountability.”
The band’s lawyer, Christopher Frost, slammed Farrell’s complaint and his account of incidents backstage. “If there is a question about what to believe, you can believe the video we’ve all watched,” said Frost in a statement. “You can believe Etty Farrell’s contemporaneous Instagram posts stating: ‘Perry was clearly the aggressor, I’m not arguing that point at all… [H]e has been struggling mentally for quite some time….’ You can believe Perry himself when he apologized to the Band: ‘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.’ Today’s complaint from Perry, including his account of events backstage after the September 13 show, is revisionist history. It won’t stand.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Navarro, Avery, and Perkins filed a lawsuit against Farrell and accused him of assault, battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, and breach of contract. The suit also claimed that the group lost over $10 million as a result of the tour’s cancellation and cessation of all band activities, including plans for the first album by the classic lineup since 1990’s Ritual de lo Habitual. His former bandmates also asked Farrell to pay all of the group’s outstanding bills stemming from the tour’s cancellation.
This article was updated on July 16, 2025, at 8:33 p.m. ET to include a statement from Jane’s Addiction’s lawyer, Christopher Frost
