By the time their third record, "Regular Urban Survivors" was released in 1996, Briptop was firmly established in the mainstream, but perhaps surprisingly Terrorvision thrived. Single "Perseverance" charted at number five (It's awesome "Whales and Dolphins" hook proving irresistable to daytime radio and indie dancefloors alike) and the album was a commercial and critical hit. In many ways a bigger, widescreen sequel to HTMFAIP (with a couple of songs suspiciously close to re-makes - Bad Actress = Middleman, Celebrity Hitlist = Discotheque Wreck...) the cover featured the band larking around as spoof filmstars and was ostensibly a soundtrack to a fictional film - an idea reflected in songs such as "Didn't Bleed Red" (sci-fi) and "Dog Chewed the Handle" (An implausible murder mystery) The band still got in a few digs in at the Briptop elite, with "Superchronic" taking a few swipes at Oasis.
The odd man out, though, of Terrorvision albums is without doubt 1998's "Shaving Peaches", a curiously restrained record which in hindsight sounds like an ill-founded attempt to gain a mainstream audience which in truth they probably already had. Basically, TV forgot how to rock. Despite the album selling poorly, it ironically spawned their biggest hit, "Tequila". Admittedly it was a Mint Royale remix of the track which reached number 2, but in truth it didn't differ that much from the original, adding only an irresistably immediate speed-mariachi tempo. The band took this in their stride - where other, cooler bands would have turned their nose up at such psuedo-success, Terrorvison cheekily just learned to play the remix live instead.
Dropped from major label EMI after "Shaving Peaches", Terrorvision finally returned in 2001 with the independently released "Good To Go". Probably knowing it would be their final record, it is very much a return to 'classic' Terrorvision and in many ways a return to form. Whilst the record lacks some of their prime period sparkle, the choruses are undeniably huge and the album brims with the band's trademark good time party vibes. "Friends And Family", in particular went down a storm at festivals, with its joyously profane "Party Over Here, Fuck You Over There!" refrain.
Terrorvision played their 'final' gig in October 2001, in their hometown of Bradford - a riotous celebration of all things TV which was eventually released as a double live album, "Take The Money And Run".
Since Terrorvision split there have been a number of side projects including Tony Wright's Laika Dog, Leigh Marklew's Malibu Stacey and Mark Yates's Blunderbuss and Boomville. Tony Wright has also released two solo albums and one country album with Ryan Hamilton, and tours with Milton "Milly" Evans performing acoustic versions of Terrorvision songs as well as his own material.
Ultimately Terrorvision were a wonderful oddity - despite coming from a undeniably Heavy Metal background, the band took the genre, (Which, lets not forget, was in terminal decline during the mid 90s) stripped away the po-faced seriousness, and fashioned a rock party band from the ashes. Often dismissed as a novelty act, TV in truth simply loved what they did, and never once considered being too cool to show it. Mark Yates's urgent, exciting guitars anchored the band musically, but it's Tony Wright's hyper-go-go vocals which truly make the band, delighting in rolling his Yorkshire vowels around wordplay which lyrically is sometimes closer to rap than rock. They never hid behind the too-common pretence of disliking success - Terrorvision celebrated every foray into the mainstream and were never afraid to show it. At the same time, they surely gave a generation of Britpop kids a taste what rock delights could await them - witness the bands cover versions of Iggy Pop's "The Passenger", Cheap Trick's "Surrender", Free's "Wishing Well" or perhaps most bizzarely, their lounge-blues version of Iron Maiden's "Take Your Daughter To the Slaughter". They even dabbled with Paul Oakenfold remixes and their very own handbag-house-rock foray, B-side "Too Stoned To Dance". All hail Terrorvision then, Bradford' finest (and most proud) musical export.
While they have never returned to music full-time, Terrorvision have reformed numerous times since their initial split. The first time was for a 'one week only' tour in 2005, for which a live album and DVD were recorded, followed by a performance at Scarborough Castle later that year.
In 2007, the band announced that they were reforming again for a small number of gigs, this time without bassist and founding member Leigh Marklew. Danny Lambert, member of Mark Yates' band Blunderbuss, stood in for Leigh. The following year Leigh returned to the band and the original lineup performed on several short tours and festival appearances over the next few years, including a tour celebrating the 15th anniversary of "How To Make Friends and Influence People", for which two live albums were made available - one recorded from the Manchester show, and one from the London show.
In 2010, drummer and founding member Ian "Shutty" Shuttleworth retired from the band and was replaced by Cameron Greenwood. Terrorvision announced that they were working on a new album, their first new music since 2001. The album, "Super Delux", was released in February 2011. The band continued to tour and make festival appearances, performing at Download Festival in 2012, their highest profile gig in some time.
The band went on hiatus from 2013-2016, returning for a one-off 'Alternative Valentines' show on the 14th of February. Later that year they embarked on a UK tour supporting Thunder, and announced a headline tour at the end of the year for the 20th anniversary of "Regular Urban Survivors". A live album was released, recorded at the Manchester Ritz, as well as a behind-the-scenes DVD film, "Wired Up and Scary".
Since 2016 the band have continued to perform on an annual basis, including a novel triple-headline tour in 2018 with Reef and The Wildhearts called "Britrock Must Be Destroyed", where the order of the bands would rotate from one gig to the next, and a 25th anniversary tour for "How To Make Friends and Influence People" in 2019.
Also in 2019, Terrorvision released their first new material since "Super Delux" eight years prior - the Christmas single "Our Christmas Song", as well as a pre-order exclusive download track "By My Side". The band have indicated their intention to release more new music during 2020, though whether this takes the form of an album, EP or individual tracks is currently unknown.
Tequila
Terrorvision Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So hard to say no though it gives one the fever,
Pretends to be friendly,
Then it's all over, over,
It's all over, over,
Pretends to be fine,
Then the curse of Tequila,
Con Tequila it feels fine,
Con Tequila when the doors are opened,
And con Tequila when they're calling time,
That's the curse of,
Sierra sunrise and Margarita,
They'll break your heart in the desert heat,
Tell you you're thirsty,
They'll tell you you're sober, sober,
It's all over, over,
They'll tell you you're fine,
Then the curse of Tequila
If there's a lot on your mind it's there to help you forget,
To relax and rewind and leave behind the regret,
First sip makes you well before you know it it's time,
And you're saying to hell with the salt, lemon and lime,
Salt, lemon and lime, time Tequila,
That's the curse of Tequila
The song "Tequila" by Terrorvision is an ode to the cursed drink that makes one feel fine temporarily, but leaves them with a hangover that they regret. The song starts off by addressing Jose Cuervo, the popular brand of tequila and how it is hard to resist. The drink is portrayed as pretending to be friendly, but in reality, once it's consumed, it's "all over." The song talks about how tequila makes one happy and feel fine, but it also warns about its cursed nature. The lyrics mention other popular tequila drinks like Sierra sunrise and Margarita, which are said to break hearts in the desert heat.
The chorus repeats the phrase "the curse of Tequila" which alludes to the fact that the short-lived happiness that it brings is not worth the hangover and regret that follows. The lyrics suggest that if one has a lot on their mind, tequila is there to help them forget and relax. The song concludes with a declaration to hell with the traditional salt, lemon, and lime routine that comes with tequila and to embrace tequila for what it is, even though it is a curse.
Overall, the song is a playful and humorous take on the well-known consequences of consuming too much tequila. The lyrics warn about its illusory nature and invite the listener to embrace its temporary happiness nonetheless.
Line by Line Meaning
Ode to Jose the curse of Cuervo,
Paying homage to the infamous Tequila brand, Jose Cuervo, which has caused many to suffer its intoxicating effects.
So hard to say no though it gives one the fever,
It's challenging to resist the temptation of Tequila, despite its tendency to make one feel hot and feverish.
Pretends to be friendly,
Tequila lures you in with its seemingly friendly taste.
Then it's all over, over,
But then it's over, and things start to get out of control.
It's all over, over,
Once the effects of Tequila set in, it can be hard to stop.
Pretends to be fine,
Tequila often disguises its true effects and can make you feel like everything is okay.
Then the curse of Tequila,
But eventually, the 'curse' of Tequila takes hold and things go downhill.
It makes me happy,
Despite the potential consequences, Tequila does have the ability to make people happy.
Con Tequila it feels fine,
Drinking Tequila initially feels great.
Con Tequila when the doors are opened,
Tequila is the drink of choice when the party gets started.
And con Tequila when they're calling time,
Even when last call is announced, Tequila still seems like a good idea.
That's the curse of,
This behavior is all part of the curse of Tequila.
Sierra sunrise and Margarita,
Other popular tequila drinks like the Sierra Sunrise and Margarita can also lead to trouble.
They'll break your heart in the desert heat,
Drinking Tequila in the hot desert heat can have negative consequences.
Tell you you're thirsty,
Tequila makes you feel thirsty, which can lead to overconsumption.
They'll tell you you're sober, sober,
Tequila can deceive you into thinking you're sober when you're not.
It's all over, over,
Once Tequila takes hold, it can be hard to recover.
They'll tell you you're fine,
Tequila can make you feel like everything is okay, even when it's not.
Then the curse of Tequila
Eventually, the true effects of Tequila will set in and the curse will take hold.
If there's a lot on your mind it's there to help you forget,
Tequila has a reputation for helping people forget their problems and relax.
To relax and rewind and leave behind the regret,
Tequila can help people unwind and forget past mistakes.
First sip makes you well before you know it it's time,
The first sip of Tequila can make you feel great, but time flies when you're having fun.
And you're saying to hell with the salt, lemon and lime,
After a few drinks, people often stop caring about the traditional Tequila accompaniments of salt, lemon, and lime.
Salt, lemon and lime, time Tequila,
Despite the traditional accompaniments, Tequila is the real star of the show.
That's the curse of Tequila
The chaotic and unpredictable effects of Tequila are all part of its curse.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: LEIGH MARKLEW, IAN SHUTTLEWORTH, ANTHONY WRIGHT, MARK YATES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind