WORDS AND IMAGES RHYS GROVER
Jane’s Addiction are around halfway through their storming European tour, which has already seen some incredible sets at the likes of Bearded Theory Festival, two nights at London’s incredible Roundhouse and a night at the incredibly iconic Barrowlands in Glasgow.
They’re a band that have been around for an incredible stint now, and despite some slight adjustments to the lineup, they’re now back with the fantastic Dave Navarro and the full original lineup are absolute tearing it up on stage together. As a band, they’re now in their fourth decade, but showing no signs of stepping away from the limelight. Why would they when they still sound this good.
It’s the first time in a very long time I’ve stepped foot into the Apollo and the standing area has been packed back to the doors well before the main act have taken to the stage. This is why well chosen support acts can be so critical to a good evening, and although I got there too late to photograph Humanist, the remaining portion of their set made for some very good viewing.
Jane’s Addiction took the stage sometime after 9pm, and donning capes and fedoras, hiding in the shadows it was a visual masterpiece. The occasional flash of white lights showed their positions, and by the time the stage was lit again they had ended up somewhere else in a matter of seconds. The vocal capacity of Perry Farrell was on show from minute one, and his use of effects pedals left you hypnotised by his voice as it danced and echoed around the stage.
Then there’s Dave Navarro. He was forced to take time away from touring due to the effects of COVID, which later turned to long COVID, however fans are incredibly pleased to welcome him back. It says something about the quality of a guitarist when the likes of Troy Van Leeuwenn had stepped into fill the void previously.
When you see the setlist, you think it’s short, somewhere around 14-15 tracks, but then you remember the length of some of their offerings and you know you’ll be here for the long run. ‘Up the Beach’, ‘Whores’ and ‘Had a Dad’ kicked off the night, and were shortly followed by a tour debut of ‘1%’ to which the crowd were pleasantly surprised. There was also a good helping of their biggest tracks with ‘Jane Says’, ‘Just Caught Stealing’ and ‘Mountain Song’ all given a place in the set.
There’s something truly wonderful about watching a band who many may disregard as not being in their prime do their thing with such vigour and ferocity. Quality music is always worth a viewing, and Jane’s Addiction are definitely no exception to this rule. Their impeccable skill, paired with their eerie yet captivating stage presence and their adoring fans is the perfect combination to result in a night you’ll struggle to forget.
SET LIST
1/ Up the Beach
2/ Whores
3/ Had a Dad
4/ Ain’t No Right
5/ 1%
6/ Imminent Redemption
7/ Ted, Just Admit It…
8/ Jane Says
9/ Then She Did…
10/ Been Caught Stealing
11/ Ocean Size
12/ Stop!
Encore:
13/ Three Days
14/ Mountain Song
Encore 2:
15/ Chip Away
FOLLOW JANES ADDICTION
My life is a soundtrack, i track my life through music, photography is my passion, my escape, my expression. Without both i have pieces missing, thankfully i’m blessed and get to combine both.
Born in Manchester, lived in Australia for 22 years where i was heavily involved in the Australian Music Industry, firstly in bands (Singer) and then managing bands (all original), I moved back to the UK, Wales specifically 10 years ago
