The Beasts of Bourbon's music has often been compared to that of a rougher Rolling Stones (whose 'Cocksucker Blues' they covered), The Gun Club (who they played with and who some Beasts filled in for) and The Birthday Party. In Germany, the band were described as 'Muddy Waters on crack'. Their music is a tough amalgam of country music, blues, rock and roll and punk parsed through the garage sound of The Stooges and the drunken mayhem of Australian pub rock. It often touches on themes of depravity, morbidity, despair, drug abuse and violence.
The group were initially thrown together by vocalist Tex Perkins to fulfill a booking his previous band, Tex Deadly and the Dum-Dums, could no longer make. The band began playing together in small venues in Sydney. The initial version of the group included Spencer P. Jones of The Johnnys, Boris Sudjovic and Kim Salmon of The Scientists and James Baker of The Hoodoo Gurus. Recruited in large part because they were often found in the Southern Cross, an inner-city Sydney bar, these members form what is considered by some to be the 'classic' line-up. This lineup was featured on the band's first album, The Axeman's Jazz, recorded in 1984 in a single afternoon for one hundred dollars by Tony Cohen. The album was an excursion into deranged Gothic country and western, with a strong sense of irony and irreverence toward country music's clichés. A cover of "Psycho" was a hit on alternative radio. Although the album became an underground success, the band continued, for the time being, to be just a side project for its members until 1988.
The Beasts of Bourbon grew from simply being a side project to become a true supergroup of the Australian pub rock scene. The original line-up fell apart in 1984 when the Scientists left Australia to tour overseas; fill-ins included Stu Spasm of Lubricated Goat and Brad Shepard of The Hoodoo Gurus. When both the Johnnys and the Scientists fell apart, however, the original line-up reunited in 1987, to record another album, Sour Mash in 1988. The swamp-rock of The Axeman's Jazz had given way to a fusion of blues-based pub rock and punk with great effect. Black Milk, recorded in 1990, expanded on this idea.
The band grew particularly confident and powerful while touring Europe on the back of Sour Mash and grew in popularity. In 1991, Baker and Sujdovic left to be replaced by Brian Hooper and Tony Pola - the bassist and drummer of Kim Salmon's new band, The Surrealists. This line-up (considered by other fans to be the 'classic' line-up) recorded the highly popular album The Low Road in 1991. The band disintegrated in Europe while touring to support the album.
A double album of live tracks and rarities, titled The Belly of the Beasts - Live '91 & '92 and shit we didn't put out the first time was released to mark the group's ten years together, and the group toured extensively in support of the album. Following the tour, it appeared as if the Beasts would announce their demise. Salmon left the group to concentrate on the Surrealists and Perkins' group The Cruel Sea was achieving huge success with their album The Honeymoon is Over.
In 1996, the group reformed with former Divinyl Charlie Owen on guitar and released Gone in 1997. The album received lukewarm reviews, but managed to produce a minor single in the form of Saturated. In 1997 the band went on hiatus.
In 2003, they reformed to record a live album, Low Life, released on Spooky Records. In 2006, they reformed to play in the Big Day Out Festival around Australia and New Zealand.
In late December 2006 it was announced that Albert Productions had signed an exclusive worldwide recording deal with the band and they are set to unleash their new album ‘Little Animals’ on April 21st 2007.
Tex Perkins said ” The Alberts label releases have been a huge influence on the Beasts of Bourbon, so to be signed to this legendary label is not only a great honour and the start of an exciting new chapter in the bands history, it feels like…..Destiny”
Recently the group played alongside other Autralian bands and artists at the [Rockin' for Rights] concert which protested the unfair Workchoices legislation of the Howard Government.
After a show in Berlin in April 2008, the group cancelled their remaining tour dates and ended the band. Rumours say that a heated drunken argument between Tex Perkins and Spencer P Jones forced Spencer to return to Australia immediately with no intention of continuing the Beasts project.
Ride On
Beasts of Bourbon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Jesus makes love to the spike
A trick for a fix and feeling so sick
Just can't seem to get right
Once he was the king of his world
A world without any order
Sold it all without thinking twice
Just for a spoonful of water
Ride, ride through you
Ride, ride on through
Ride, ride through you
Ceremonious ritual
Raising of the veins
Always early and feeling so late
Waving goodbye to the rain
Ride, ride on through
Ride, ride through you
Ride, ride on through
Ride, ride through you
Slowly scratching away at the world
Fearless when he is stoned
Obsessed by dreams of what could've been
Trapped in his kingdom alone
Ride, ride on through
Ride, ride through you
Ride, ride on through
Ride, ride through you
The lyrics of Beasts of Bourbon's "Ride On" depicts a story of a person who is struggling with addiction. The opening lines, "Doesn't know what to do anymore, Jesus makes love to the spike" paints a picture of someone who is lost and turning to drugs as a solution. The use of "spike" implies the use of a needle to consume narcotics. The person is fully aware that they are addicted and are unable to shake off the feeling. The line "Just can't seem to get right" perhaps speaks to the cycle of addiction where the person is searching for that one hit that will make everything okay but never seems to be able to find it.
The second verse continues the story of the person's downward spiral. They may have been successful at one point in their lives, as suggested by the line "Once he was the king of his world, a world without any order". However, addiction has made them lose everything, as suggested by "sold it all without thinking twice, just for a spoonful of water". The title "Ride On" may refer to the cycle of drug seeking behavior that the person is trapped in. The chorus of "Ride, ride on through, ride, ride through you" could be interpreted as the person seeking an escape or a way to ride out the addiction without actually facing it.
Overall, the lyrics of "Ride On" are dark and sobering, depicting the bleak reality of addiction and the toll it takes on a person's life.
Line by Line Meaning
Doesn't know what to do anymore
The singer is lost and directionless, unsure of how to proceed.
Jesus makes love to the spike
The singer feels a temporary sense of ecstasy from drugs, but it is ultimately a hollow experience.
A trick for a fix and feeling so sick
The singer is willing to do anything to satisfy their addiction, but is left feeling empty and unwell.
Just can't seem to get right
No matter how hard the artist tries, they can't overcome their addiction and find peace.
Once he was the king of his world
The artist used to feel in control and empowered, but addiction has taken that away.
A world without any order
The singer's life has become chaotic and unpredictable due to their addiction.
Sold it all without thinking twice
The singer has sacrificed everything they had, including their dignity and relationships, in pursuit of their addiction.
Just for a spoonful of water
The artist is willing to give up everything for a brief moment of relief from their addiction.
Ride, ride on through
The artist encourages themselves to keep going, even though it is difficult and painful.
Ride, ride through you
The artist is urging themselves to make it through their addiction and come out the other side.
Ceremonious ritual
The act of getting high has become a ritual for the singer, with a specific process and routine that they follow.
Raising of the veins
The artist is preparing their body to receive drugs, going through the physical motions to make it happen.
Always early and feeling so late
The singer's addiction has made them feel like they are living outside of time, always waiting for their next fix and never quite present in the moment.
Waving goodbye to the rain
The singer is saying goodbye to the things that used to bring them joy and comfort, symbolized by the rain.
Slowly scratching away at the world
The singer is slowly destroying their life, piece by piece, through their addiction.
Fearless when he is stoned
The artist feels invincible and unafraid when they are under the influence of drugs, but it is a false sense of confidence.
Obsessed by dreams of what could've been
The artist is haunted by the idea of what their life could have been like if they hadn't become addicted to drugs.
Trapped in his kingdom alone
The singer is stuck in their addiction, isolated from the world around them and unable to break free.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JAMES HORNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind