In an interview on Steve-O’s Wild Ride! podcast, KISS frontman Paul Stanley shared his thoughts on the onstage altercation that occurred during JANE’S ADDICTION‘s concert in Boston last month.
“Cardinal rule: you don’t hit. And you don’t bring your problems on stage,” Stanley said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). “You leave your ego — well, that’s more difficult. But you leave your anger and your resentment at the bottom of the stairs. And we would go on stage and have a great time sometimes playing and then walk off stage and not be talking to each other. The audience doesn’t deserve that. The audience paid. And that goes back to that same philosophy of being the band we never saw.”
“People get one chance to see you, possibly on a tour,” he continued. “It doesn’t matter about last night or about the night after — that’s their night, and for them to see you not interacting with your bandmate, that’s kid s**t. That’s disrespectful to the people who paid.
“There was a few times [in KISS‘s touring days] where there were two people who wouldn’t be talking to two other people. You go up on stage and rock out and have a great time and then you walk off stage and you don’t have anything to do with them. It’s your job.”
The incident took place on September 13 during the band’s Boston performance, near the end of their set while playing “Ocean Size.” Farrell, who had been slurring lyrics and appeared intoxicated, aggressively bumped into Navarro, confronted him face-to-face, and cursed at him.
A visibly confused Navarro paused, asking what was happening, and placed a hand on Farrell’s chest. Farrell then appeared to throw a punch at Navarro before being restrained by a roadie and bassist Eric Avery. Avery, along with other crew members, stepped in to bear-hug Farrell and escort him offstage.
After Farrell was escorted off the stage, the remaining members of JANE’S ADDICTION — including drummer Stephen Perkins, who was celebrating his 57th birthday — came to the front to embrace each other and thank the audience.
After the incident, JANE’S ADDICTION canceled their remaining tour dates and announced a hiatus, citing the frontman’s “mental health difficulties.”
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