Stephen Perkins: "I think we're peaking now"

[chaos]

http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/gran ... tephe.html

Jane's Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins: 'I think we're peaking now'
Published: Friday, March 16, 2012, 8:06 AM

By John Serba | jserba@mlive.com

Jane’s Addiction has been a band for 27 years. The secret to its longevity, however, is not being together for 27 years consecutively.

The Jane’s story is one of “peaks and valleys,” to use the words of drummer Stephen Perkins, who says the band’s ability to get along is key to its creative success.

“There is something romantic about the band,” he said, calling from an Oklahoma tour stop. “It’s like a hot relationship between a guy and a girl.

“I think we’re peaking now. I love it, I love spending time together. … I’m 44, but when I play Jane’s Addiction songs, I feel 17.”

The on-again, off-again nature of the group makes a Jane’s Addiction tour something of a rarity. Supporting 2011 album “The Great Escape Artist,” the band – featuring founding members Perkins, singer Perry Farrell and guitarist Dave Navarro along with bassist Chris Chaney – is playing small theaters, including Wednesday's DeVos Performance Hall show, on its current outing.

Perkins asserts that those theaters have a unique vibe, different from clubs or arenas – a vibe that fits the band’s aesthetic well.

“Our music has always been theatrical and dynamic,” he said. “We can play a punk rock tune and punch you in the face, then play ‘Classic Girl,’ and see couples in the crowd making out. Our music is half-electric and half-acoustic… it tells a story, and these are great places to tell a story.”

Jane’s Addiction formed in Los Angeles in 1985, bucking the city’s hair-metal trends and forging a sound that meshed the eclecticism of Led Zeppelin with the aggressiveness of punk rock. Farrell, Navarro, Perkins and then-bassist Eric Avery blazed a trail for the “alternative nation” of the 1990s with albums “Nothing’s Shocking” (1988) and “Ritual de lo Habitual” (1990), and hit singles “Jane Says,” “Been Caught Stealing” and “Mountain Song.”

Farrell famously spearheaded the Lollapalooza tour in 1991, bringing together a genre-spanning bunch of artists (Ice-T, Nine Inch Nails, Henry Rollins, among others), headlined by Jane’s Addiction. But the tour would mark the end of the band’s first era, the members splintering due to in-fighting and drug addiction.

Since then, Jane’s has existed in fits and shudders: A brief 1997 reunion tour; the recording and supporting jaunt for 2003 album “Strays”; a 2009 live trek with Nine Inch Nails, which led to the two-year recording process for “The Great Escape Artist.” The band initially intended to record with NIN mastermind Trent Reznor as producer, but struggled to find inspiration during the 10 days they scheduled with him in the studio.

“That was a sign that we shouldn’t have a deadline on our art,” Perkins said.

In short: if the band is inspired, and the vibe is right, Jane’s Addiction is a true musical force. The group allows no outside influence to affect it, and that’s why it still maintains its creative integrity after so long.

“Life is too short to do it for the record label or a contract,” Perkins said. “We’ve had people try to push schedules on us, set us up for the next three or five years. We’ve had a lot of different management agencies and booking agencies working for us. There might be $1 million hanging there for a tour, but if we’re not getting along, it’s not going to work.”

[Deconstruction]

In hindsight they shouldn't have gone into the studio with Trent with a 10 day time limit, they should have gone in there with the plan of making a record, no matter how long it took.

[JOEinPHX]

In hindsight Perry shouldn't have ever been in the position where Trent was needed to save his band.

[Matz]

I hate being reminded of that magic collaboration that could have been

[sonny]

unlimited time still produced a mediocre record.

i expect nothing but positivity from perk, though. can't fault him for that.

[farrellgirl99]

I hate being reminded of that magic collaboration that could have been

[blackula]

unlimited time still produced a mediocre record.

i expect nothing but positivity from perk, though. can't fault him for that.

some dudes just can't get along. i doubt that jane's with Eric would've made anything decent together no matter how much time they had. if you don't get along or respect each other's ideas you can not create together. instead, one leaves and a hipster gets brought in to replace him.

[sonny]

unlimited time still produced a mediocre record.

i expect nothing but positivity from perk, though. can't fault him for that.

some dudes just can't get along. i doubt that jane's with Eric would've made anything decent together no matter how much time they had. if you don't get along or respect each other's ideas you can not create together. instead, one leaves and a hipster gets brought in to replace him.

i agree with that. i just don't like how they side step the issues. perry and eric couldn't get along. it had nothing to do with it being 10 days.

[a headless shell]

unlimited time still produced a mediocre record.

i expect nothing but positivity from perk, though. can't fault him for that.

some dudes just can't get along. i doubt that jane's with Eric would've made anything decent together no matter how much time they had. if you don't get along or respect each other's ideas you can not create together. instead, one leaves and a hipster gets brought in to replace him.

i agree with that. i just don't like how they side step the issues. perry and eric couldn't get along. it had nothing to do with it being 10 days.

Yeah, it's on record that Perry can get a lot done in just three days.

[JOEinPHX]

unlimited time still produced a mediocre record.

i expect nothing but positivity from perk, though. can't fault him for that.

some dudes just can't get along. i doubt that jane's with Eric would've made anything decent together no matter how much time they had. if you don't get along or respect each other's ideas you can not create together. instead, one leaves and a hipster gets brought in to replace him.

i agree with that. i just don't like how they side step the issues. perry and eric couldn't get along. it had nothing to do with it being 10 days.

Yeah, it's on record that Perry can get a lot done in just three days.

To be fair, the record only states he was there. For all we know, he sat in the corner with the needle in his arm while Xiola and Casey had a nice time together.

[AdmitI]

unlimited time still produced a mediocre record.

i expect nothing but positivity from perk, though. can't fault him for that.

some dudes just can't get along. i doubt that jane's with Eric would've made anything decent together no matter how much time they had. if you don't get along or respect each other's ideas you can not create together. instead, one leaves and a hipster gets brought in to replace him.

i agree with that. i just don't like how they side step the issues. perry and eric couldn't get along. it had nothing to do with it being 10 days.

Yeah, it's on record that Perry can get a lot done in just three days.

To be fair, the record only states he was there. For all we know, he sat in the corner with the needle in his arm while Xiola and Casey had a nice time together.

^^^
=
Bad taste!

[JOEinPHX]

unlimited time still produced a mediocre record.

i expect nothing but positivity from perk, though. can't fault him for that.

some dudes just can't get along. i doubt that jane's with Eric would've made anything decent together no matter how much time they had. if you don't get along or respect each other's ideas you can not create together. instead, one leaves and a hipster gets brought in to replace him.

i agree with that. i just don't like how they side step the issues. perry and eric couldn't get along. it had nothing to do with it being 10 days.

Yeah, it's on record that Perry can get a lot done in just three days.

To be fair, the record only states he was there. For all we know, he sat in the corner with the needle in his arm while Xiola and Casey had a nice time together.

^^^
=
Bad taste!

Why?

Too soon?