Tim Rogers and Tex Perkins atthe Republic Bar, Hobart, 6September

Mon 18th Sep, 2006 in Gig Reviews

It was nearly a year ago that Aussie music stalwarts Tim Rogers and Tex Perkins played their first acoustic show together in Hobart and after countless gigs, an album and tours of the UK, Europe and the US, they returned to the scene of their first gig, the Republic Bar in North Hobart.

A capacity crowd was in early to see an amazing support line up. Mike Noga (the Drones) and Rebecca Barnard (Rebecca’s Empire) could quite easily sell out a gig on their own and seeing them warm up the crowd was worth the price of entry alone.

Noga played a few songs off his 2004 release, Folk Songs, while Barnard played a few of her better know songs as well as an interesting cover of All Along the Watchtower.

Meanwhile, Tex and Tim were in the green room relaxing after returning from overseas.

They wandered to the stage to a huge ovation. Tex sipped on a white wine, while Tim swigged laconically from a bottle of beer.

While the album, My Better Half, is a good record, going to see TnT live is more about the enigmatic stage presence that Tex and Tim have and they way that they engage with each other on stage. There was plenty of friendly banter with the crowd even before they began playing.

Tex introduced Someone Above as “a pseudo anti-God song…it’s not that we don’t believe in God, it’s just that we don’t think he’s good at his job”.

Half of Nothing was a nice introduction to what was turning out to be a far more relaxed set than what Tex and Tim have previously played in Hobart.

After the first stanza of songs the crowd were clearly enjoying themselves and hanging off everything Tex had to say. His comment “I want to start a family with you!” inspired a massive cheer from the females in the room.

Tim pulled out some of his best guitar work for Hate This City, which led nicely into Everybody Hates You When You’re Popular.

Everybody Hates You… has almost become the signature tune from the My Better Half release, and even though the song’s lyrics are full of venom and describe the fickleness of fame, it drew one of the biggest responses of the night from the crowd. After they finished the song, Tex and Tim shook hands and shared a moment, as well as a quick drink before Tex began to address the audience again. “T, I want you to leave me that shirt in your will”. Tim replied “I will T. I’m already leaving you my jocks and socks”.

The last time Tex and Tim were in Hobart was for the launch party of Undertone Records, a record store in the centre of Hobart’s CBD. That gig featured more than a few of the various classics that Tex and Tim have penned over the years. This gig was different, and there was a noticeable absence of older material from their other bands and solo projects. One obvious exception was You Am I’s Heavy Heart. Tim introduced the song with a few bars of Pink Floyd’s Shine on You Crazy Diamond before strumming out the familiar introductory chords. Tex’s low, gravely voice gave the song a different character. Tim took a verse and then left it to the crowd to finish the rest.

The highlight of the gig was a version of Rod Stewart’s Tonight’s the Night. Who really listens to Rod Stewart lyrics anyway? Apparently, if you do there are some quite disturbing messages. It is fair to say that Tex was somewhat disturbed by the lyrics, exclaiming that “tonight, on trial is Rod Stewart. Tonight’s the Night…..kiddies”. He went on to explain that the lyrics described having sex with young virgins. When the song came to the line about ‘my virgin child’ he paused to make sure that everyone understood what was going on.

Despite the apparent references to paedophilia, the dark, moody spin that Tex and Tim put on a middle-of-the-road classic was quite enjoyable.

Since the whole TnT project accidentally started in Hobart nearly a year ago, Tex and Tim have moved on from covering their own greatest hits and into new territory. It’s probably the most entertaining live act around at the moment.