Perry Ferrell

Rev (Warner Bros.)
by Jon Sarre

I hate this guy. I hate him even more since I received this “career retrospective” thing, oddly enough billed as a Perry Farrell “solo record” (even tho’ fourteen outta sixteen tracks are courtesy of his two previous dumbass alt-metal bands, the at-least-usually-palatable Jane’s Addiction and the almost always fingers-on-chalkboard irritating Porno For Pyros). The remaining two unlistenable excuses for Farrell’s solo trip, “Rev,” shorthand for a pied piper to the stupid, too lazy and half-assed to spell “Revolution” and the annoying beat-breaker I-wish-upon-the-singer-a-hell-of-Bonham-endlessly-practicing-tom-rolls-on-his-skull cover of Led Zep’s “Whole Lotta Love,” are the suitably useless drivel you’d expect from the marketing whiz responsible for Lollapalooza.

When all’s taken into perspective (i.e. in context of the whole shitty record), the Jane’s stuff is brilliant, albeit fairly predictable: “Been Caught Stealing,” “Jane Says,” “Stop,” “Mountain Song,” “Summertime Rolls,” yeah, yeah, that art-metal cheeze that got Perry’s insect lungs noticed in the first place. Porno For Pyros, being what it was, a full-on ego trip for a talentless tattooed troubadour who wanted the “voice of the lost and apathetic generation” crown that Kurt Cobain blew off his brow (oops, shoulda aimed higher) rather than have it foisted upon him, is represented here (more than I could stand to hear) too: “Tonight,” “Kimberly Autism er Austin,” “Tahitian Moon,” “Pets” after which I’d had all I could stand and shut that crap off. I’m sure the remainder (“Cursed Male,” “100 Wigs, I Mean, Ways,” “Hard Charger,” what, no “Black Girlfriend”?) is gonna be familiar to people who dig this shit – tho’ the cover of Lou Reed’s “Satellite of Love” isn’t that bad, mainly cuz it sounds like someone else singing. If only Farrell coulda worked on more songs like that.
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