With members of their entourage either being "celebrity" panellists on some sick in the mouth 'X Factor for corporate rockers' or starring in fly on the wall docs about their significant other halves, some might accuse Jane's Addiction of becoming the enemy of music and turning into the bloated opposite of everything they once stood for.  This album heralds the dawn of yet another come back for the Californian band and here I am about to investigate the fourth studio offering from the once majestic Jane's Addiction.

I'm sure you will agree that Perry Farrell has a very distinct Marmite vocal style but with the band's funky rhythm section married to the buzz saw riffery of Dave Navarro this band made some of the most passionate and emotion stirring rock music of the late eighties/early nineties.  I remember being blown away when I first got hold of their TripleX released album 'Janes Addiction'. Everything from it's submissive artwork through to the wonderful "1%" and simple 'I Would For You' was perfect.  Then came the move to Warner Bros and the breakthrough big seller 'Nothing's Shocking' containing some monumental alternative rock music that was as uncompromising as it was beautiful.  From the opening strains of 'Up The Beach' to the beast that was 'Pigs In Zen' I loved their albums and the live shows were always a little edgy.  From the first gig I saw at London's ULU to their stadium bothering slots Jane's Addiction were outsiders, definite 1%ers and that appealed to me as they never compromised always doing things on their terms. 

Fast forward through some dodgy career moves and TV appearances, we can also forget some very indifferent projects such as Navarro in The Red Hot Corporate Peppers or Perry Farrell's okay-ish Satellite Party and Porno For Pyros.  What we wanted was the real thing, and when Jane's Addiction finally reformed and gave us the average 'Strays' in 2003 you simply couldn't help but notice that along with some highs there were an awful lot of middle and distinctly average bits also. 

2011 then and it's time for the Jane's circus to reconvene once more and knock out another album in the shape of The Great Escape Artist' and once 'Underground' crashes in on a familiar buzz riff I'm immediately excited as to what might be about to happen for the next forty minutes. Sure it's not as massive as their previous album openers but this isn't bad at all. 'End To The Lies' is quick on the heels of 'Underground' and again the listener gets bombarded with a sonic soundscape that is immaculately produced (as one would expect from Janes Addiction) and with this one they also mange to throw in some healthy slabs of Killing Joke's pop sensibilities.

Then things get even more interesting; 'Curiosity Kills' has a great bass rumble and sounds like the band have been eating out on a diet of Siouxsie Sioux records this really isn't bad at all, that is until I get to the chorus and I'm starting to hear some U2 creeping from the speakers of my death decks.  Not that that's a bad thing but it's just not sitting comfortably at the moment, anyway perhaps it will pass with the next track 'Irresistible Force'? But to be honest this track is merely OK but in fact it's not OK is it?  This is Janes Addiction for fucks sake not Coldplay. This is definitely U2 ground that Perry and co are treading on and to be honest it's getting blander by the minute. 

I'm halfway through this album and already I'm beginning to fidget as it hasn't quite lived up to my expectations and I'm not sure I'm liking the direction it's a heading.  Maybe they should have declared this album the antithesis to 'Nothing's Shocking' and named it 'Fucking Shocking' as this is bloated, middle of the road, easy listening and AOR radio America here we come. I mean 'Twisted Tales' isn't a bad song it's actually quite catchy but on the bridge and chorus it has turned into full-blown U2 middle of the road and Perry Farrell ends up sounding like Disco era Debbie Harry rather than Perry Farrell.

Maybe the broadsheets and "quality" music mags like Q will gush over this as the great white hope for alternative music but me I'm gutted. It isn't without merit because it starts well and ends well with the excellent 'Words Right Out Of My Mouth' but in the middle it just turns into nothing! Absolutely nothing. It's truly forgettable and I guess it's a sad reflection of their on screen personalities but watching as they join the ranks of the other faceless fuckers on reality shows. I'm honestly gutted to see such a once peerless bunch of musicians become everything they once rebelled against.  Hopefully they haven't pissed on their once great legacy too much and they can manage to catch hold of themselves before it's too late, but with this release I've just seen the doctor ask the nurse for the defibrillator and request she turn the fucker to the max because we're in danger of losing this Addiction. Jane's Addiction are suffering uber rockers; maybe even on the critical list; but most definitely in intensive care.

What really made me saddest of all when putting my copy of 'The Great Escape Artist' back on the pile of CD's I have marked "not for playing" was seeing the tracks on the bonus live album that came with my limited edition of the album; 'Whores', 'Ain't No Right', 'Ted Just Admit It', 'Three Days', 'Mountain Song', 'Been Caught Stealing', 'Ocean Size', 'Jane Says' and 'Stop!'  I think I just wept a little.

Gutted! Simply gutted!

http://janesaddiction.com/splash