The seeds of the fully-formed Dark Horses were sown during the last tour Perkins undertook with the Dark Horses to support the eponymous Dark Horses record in 2011. “The last record was very much a case of Murray and I writing a bunch of songs, and then wondering who we’d get to bring it to life,” Perkins says. “But the songwriting process this time around involved the band. I used them as much as possible, and recorded bits and pieces along the way to construct the demos. So this time the band was part of the writing process, which is an important distinction.”
Even though the other members of the Dark Horses contributed to the songs at the time of their composition, Perkins remained the titular leader of the group. “While I did step back to some extent and feature the members of the band more than I had previously, I oversaw, and saw through this record more than previous records,” Perkins says. “Whereas previously I’d handed over the recording process more to Charlie [Owen], this time I was all over it a lot more. It both has a far more band feel, but having said that I feel more in control of the whole thing because that’s what I wanted.”
The new Dark Horses record deviates from the country-blues style typical of previous Perkins solo outings. “The Dark Horses has been a vehicle for my solo songwriting, and it has had a bit of a singer-songwriter feel to it,” Perkins says. “But here we had more of an eye on what would be fun to play, so it’s a much more physical record. It’s more of a rock’n’roll record – and probably more of a rock’n’roll record than the Dark Horses have done before. And it also includes a bit of stuff that I haven’t been able to do for a while, the filthy weird stuff. There’s a bit of filth, and a bit of weirdness on this record,” Perkins laughs.
The Dark Horses’ indulgence of the ‘filthy weird stuff’ can be seen in the spacey keyboards contributed by both James Cruickshank and Charlie Owen, notably in the freak-happy A Real Job. “You might have hit upon a sore point there, Patrick,” Perkins comments. “Charlie has really been our synth man, but it’s James and Charlie who contribute keyboards to the record,” he says. Perkins notes that the bass duties of Steve Hadley and Joel Silbersher are also reversed on A Real Job, with Hadley assuming Silbersher’s more colourful style. “There’s some interesting combinations and cross-pollination of personalities and peoples’ roles on this record,” Perkins says. “That’s what I wanted this record to be about – we have some wonderful players, so let’s hear them play.”
On tracks such as Open Ended, Perkins appears to be traversing the surf-roots territory he explored with The Cruel Sea. It’s a comparison that Perkins isn’t at all offended at hearing. “Absolutely,” Perkins says. “I had actually intended to make a Cruel Sea record earlier this year. I guess there’s aspects of the Cruel Sea, the Beasts, there’s even aspects of Thug coming out in the Dark Horses at the moment. Which makes it an even more interesting brew.” So in that context, is it a Best of Tex Perkins? Perkins laughs at the suggestion, and runs with it. “Indeed, maybe it is – The Best Bits of Tex Perkins that you’ve never heard. Now that you mention it, maybe everyone who’s ever given a shit about me over the last 40 years will want to buy this record.”
Beyond the Dark Horses, Perkins has plenty on his plate in coming months, with tours with the Dark Horses, a reformation of the original recorded Beasts Of Bourbon lineup (featuring Perkins, Spencer Jones, Kim Salmon, Boris Sudjovic and James Baker) for the All Tomorrow’s Parties event in January and a Foxtel television special called The People Speak, which features Perkins and other artistic icons reading notable historical quotations. “And there’s a Tex, Don and Charlie album waiting over there, but who knows when that will come together,” Perkins says. “I’ve already started working on the next Dark Horses record, which we’ll probably start fiddling with this tour.”
But it’s Perkins’ last comment that’s the most intriguing. “I’m going to release an exercise DVD, called Texpo – you should buy the DVD. That reminds me – I should get back to the gym. And you don’t know whether I’m serious or not, do you?” Perkins laughs.
BY PATRICK EMERY
