Yarra Ranges are in for a treat as duo Tex Perkins and Matt Walker get ready to bring their iconic sound to Upwey next week.
No strangers to the Hills, the duo are set to play co-written originals along with heartfelt cover versions and classics from Tex’s back catalogue.
Star Mail journalist Tanya Steele caught up with Tex over the phone in the weeks leading up to their show in Upwey.
“It can get quite intimate and delicate, and the songs can be quite moving,” said Tex.
“But also there’s a lot of joyous moments,’ he said.
Not giving away too much, Tex said, there might be a little bit of storytelling and possibly some loud, epic moments in store for the audience.
Stating he has been around for a while now, Tex jokes a little and said he thinks some of the lyrics he has been writing have gotten better.
“They’ve sort of come out fairly instinctively and quickly – but there’s a little more depth to them,” he said.
With new material in store, Tex said he and Matt have been writing new songs and might present a few of those, with the aim of recording a new album in the next year.
Tex and Matt are both keen to start road testing their newer material, and with a friendship stretching back into the 90s, Tex said, working in a duo with Matt is one of his favourite things to do.
“It’s very easy and very productive when we do get together, “he said.
“When I started playing with Matt, I realised we could play pretty much any style, and it sort of really opened up the whole spectrum of what we could do.”
Selby Folk Club darling and musician from the age of 14, to say Matt Walker is an icon of the hills music scene would be an understatement.
With his blues and improvisational origins, Matt used to open with Ash Davies for the Cruel Sea, then later, Tex said they came together to perform in the Johnny Cash tribute show ‘The Man in Black’, which ran for a massive 18-month stint in 2017.
Stretching from raw and intimate to quite epic material, Tex said there is great flexibility in playing the way they do.
“There’s nothing in my back catalogue that Matt can’t play and can’t sort of bring new life into, and there’s a very broad dynamic range of the material we play,” he said.
Tex and Matt released the self-titled album Tex Perkins & The Fat Rubber Band in November 2021, which they wrote and produced together and it was then followed by the band’s second album Other World in 2023.
Later in 2023 saw The Cruel Sea saw their reunion for the 30th anniversary tour of the “The Honeymoon is Over” album.
Matt Walker, stepping in for the late James Cruickshank, has brought a fresh dynamic to the band, and Tex said he was the logical person to step in.
After their little mini-stint in Victoria, the Cruel Sea join the Red Hot Summer tour and will be quite busy from then on.
Looking forward to how the age of digital technology and AI is unfolding through the music scene, Tex said that there is still quite a big music scene happening for younger artists in Australia, with his own children now writing and performing in their own right.
“In this age where everyone is fixated with their phones and fixated with online gaming and all this stuff that’s actually not tangible – I think it’s good to see young people who have something tangible, something that’s not connected to the internet, that they’re creating and that they’re passionate about,” he said.
Stating that being a working musician is something he doesn’t take for granted, and that connecting face to face and playing is more important than ever, quite earnestly, Tex said that connection through playing is a key part of being an artist.
“It’s really priceless – whether it leads to success or any kind of career is kind of beside the point at this stage,” he said.
Luke Watt, a folk/blues singer-songwriter and guitar player, is the support act for Tex and Matt’s gig and will kick off at the Burrinja Cultural Centre on Saturday 29 November.
No strangers to Upwey, Tex said he’s looking forward to stopping by with Matt.
“We love playing there and we’re looking forward to seeing everyone “, he said.
