xtrmntr's Full Review: Ritual De Lo Habitual by Jane's Addiction
Perry Farrell: rock visionary or eccentric lunatic? The enigmatic frontman is quite probably both, but on the evidence of this, Jane’s Addiction’s second album (and undoubtedly the jewel in Farrell’s musical crown), “Ritual De Lo Habitual”, the former looks somewhat more likely…but only just.
This album is quite simply breathtaking in its scope, incorporating metal, punk, prog, funk, folk, jazz, psychedelia and whatever else the band fancied throwing into the mix. While it’s predecessor, the “Led Zeppelin-gone-art-rock” of 1988’s “Nothing’s Shocking” served as a great introduction to the band, “Ritual…” is the real deal: a deeper, more wide-ranging follow-up that stands as the band’s peak and one of rock’s greatest sprawling masterpieces.
Beginning with “Stop!”, Perry and co. do anything but as the song takes off, propelled by guitarist Dave Navarro’s frantic funk riff, and reveals itself as an exhilarating piece of funk/punk complete with an anthemic tempo change during the mid-section and one of Navarro’s squealing solos. It sounds like a hyperactive version of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and serves as a wonderful opener.
The even funkier “No One’s Leaving” follows with its lyrics acting as something of a plea for racial harmony:
“My sister and her boyfriend slept in a park/She had to leave home because he was dark/Now they’re parading around New York with a baby boy/He’s gorgeous!”
“Ain’t No Right” begins with an (almost) cover of Ian Dury’s “Sex And Drugs And Rock And Roll” (with Perry adding a friendly ad lib in “My sex and my drugs and my rock and roll are my f**king own business”). It’s a very hostile song, aimed at those who would criticise Farrell’s lifestyle:
“I am skin and bones/I am pointy nose/But a motherf**ker makes me try/…Ain’t no wrong now, ain’t no right/It’s only pleasure and pain”.
Again it is cut from a similar funk/punk cloth to the two previous tracks. The first true stylistic change comes with the slower (only a tad, mind) psychedelia of “Obvious”. Navarro’s guitar is particularly great on this track (although it’s great on ALL the tracks), it swoops and soars, perfectly complementing the hammering piano.
The catchy-as-hell “Been Caught Stealing” comes next, and a corker it is too. This is proper white-boy funk, sounding like an American version of the Happy Mondays (that drum beat is pure “Madchester”/baggy). I actually first got into Jane’s when someone recommended them as a sort American answer to The Stone Roses. At first, this may sound a little absurd…but if you listen closer, it isn’t that strange a comparison: both bands have their catchy tunes, both have shown a quite explicit Led Zep influence, both are incredibly tight with great rhythm sections and maverick guitarists, and both have charismatic frontmen with unique vocal styles.
“…Stealing” marks the end of the first half of the LP. All in all, this first half is musically the closest the record comes to pop convention, for the next few songs are where the band truly immerse themselves in their influences and create some startling music, starting with a track that is not only one of my favourite Jane’s Addiction songs, but one of my favourite songs EVER – “Three Days”. This song is just an epic, a gargantuan (standing at almost 11 minutes long) track that, along with “Then She Did…”, provides the album’s cornerstone. Despite its length, it does not get boring. Far from it, the music and lyrics combine to take the listener on an intense journey through an autobiographical account of a romantic tryst between three lovers, specifically Farrell and the two loves of his life, Casey Niccoli and Xiola Blue (NB, a rather explicit visual interpretation of the song can be found on the front cover). The track shares a similar structure to “Then She Did…”, even though in terms of sound the two songs are very different (“Three Days” resonates with Led Zeppelin-esque grandeur while “Then She Did…” is more jazz-y, sweet and lulling). Both songs start off very peacefully, gradually building, looming, threatening to just let loose and go crazy before eventually…THEY DO! The musicianship on display in these two songs in particular is first class, especially Navarro’s guitar playing. It cannot be stressed enough how good this guy is, his guitar leads each composition through musical twists and turns, exploring every mood imaginable.
“Of Course” is a mystical, middle-eastern sounding affair, which seems to use violins to play parts that would normally be performed by a sitar or something. It sounds a bit like something that wouldn’t sound out of place on The Beatles’ “Sgt Pepper…”, all swerling and psychedelic, with added folk-y touches. The lyrics focus on the hard lessons life has to teach a child as he grows up.
The final track, “Classic Girl”, is a beautiful ballad that has a slightly eerie, haunting feel to it. It’s a love song for his girlfriend Casey (or it could be about Xiola – Perry was in the unenviable position of being in love with two women). It works as a brilliant, slightly understated closer, especially after the bombast of the previous three tracks.
My only real criticism of the record is that, due to its eclectic nature, it doesn’t really flow. It serves as a collection of random songs rather than a complete album. In particular, the songs on the first half of the LP have a similar funky feel to each other, while on the second half each track almost sounds like it was made by a completely different band to the next (Farrell’s utterly distinctive vocals being the only thing that really ties them all together).
However, this doesn’t particularly detract from what is a magnificent and hugely enjoyable record. At the time, the band’s high profile made them the alternative act du jour. As Courtney Love claimed, “Get bigger than Sonic Youth, but you couldn’t get as big as Jane’s Addiction. Those were the rules”. This album cemented the band’s reputation as the first great American alternative act to gain commercial success, preparing the charts for the rise of everyone from Nirvana to Rage Against The Machine. Sadly, it proved to be their artistic swan song, although this is very unlikely to remain the case considering their recent re-formation. But even if they never release another record again, “Ritual De Lo Habitual” is one hell of a way to bow out.
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