Tex & the Horseheads is an American punk rock band, which emerged in the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

punk subculture of the early-1980. Their original run was from 1980 to 1986 and during this time they enjoyed a sizeable cult following. As of 2007, the band has reunited and tours the Los Angeles area sporadically.

Biography

Tex & the Horseheads are often cited as among the first bands to play "

cowpunk Cowpunk (or country punk) is a subgenre of punk rock that began in the United Kingdom and Southern California in the late 1970s - early 1980s. It combines punk rock or new wave with country, folk, and blues in its sound, lyrical subject matte ...

." The sound of Tex & the Horseheads, and correspondingly the sound of cowpunk, is characterized by a fusion of classic-styled country-and-Western music and street-tough LA punk bands. Tex & the Horseheads set themselves apart by appropriating

aesthetical Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste (sociology), taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, ...

and fashion elements from

deathrock Death rock (or deathrock) is a rock music subgenre incorporating horror elements and gothic theatrics. It emerged from punk rock on the West Coast of the United States in the early 1980s and overlaps with the gothic rock and horror punk gen ...

bands like Burning Image,

45 Grave 45 Grave is an American rock band from Los Angeles formed in 1979. The original group broke up in 1985, but vocalist Dinah Cancer subsequently revived the band. History The band was founded during the punk rock movement by Paul B. Cutler i ...

, and

Christian Death Christian Death is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles County, California, in 1979 by Rozz Williams. With major line-up changes over the years, Christian Death has retained "a relentlessly confrontational stand against organized religi ...

. Tex & the Horseheads' members include: Texacala Jones, Mike Martt, Gregory "Smog Boaz" and David "Rock" Thum.

Jeffrey Lee Pierce Jeffrey Lee Pierce (June 27, 1958 – March 31, 1996) was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and author. He was one of the founding members of the band The Gun Club, and released material as a solo artist. Biography Early life Pierce ...

, of

The Gun Club The Gun Club were an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, United States, which existed from 1979 to 1996. It was formed and led by singer-songwriter and guitarist Jeffrey Lee Pierce. History Early days (1979–1980) The Gun Club w ...

, was an original member of the group and was highly influential in both supporting the formation of the group. Tex and the Horseheads released two records, a self-titled record in 1984 and ''Life's So Cool'', produced in 1985 by

John Doe John Doe (male) and Jane Doe (female) are multiple-use placeholder names that are used when the true name of a person is unknown or is being intentionally concealed. In the context of law enforcement in the United States, such names are often ...

, member of X and of

the Flesh Eaters The Flesh Eaters are an American punk rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, United States, in 1977. They are the most prominent of the bands which have showcased the compositions and singing of their founder, punk poet Chris Desjardi ...

. A live album, titled ''Tot Ziens; Live in Holland'', was released by

Enigma Records Enigma Records (also known as Enigma Entertainment Corporation) was a popular rock and alternative American record label in the 1980s. History Enigma Records launched as a division of Greenworld Distribution, an independent music importer/d ...

in 1986. Their songs dealt with themes of heartbreak, love, drug and alcohol dependency, grief, loss, and financial difficulty—all a testament to their

destitute Extreme poverty, deep poverty, abject poverty, absolute poverty, destitution, or penury, is the most severe type of poverty, defined by the United Nations (UN) as "a condition characterized by severe deprivation of basic human needs, includi ...

roll-and-tumble lifestyle, as well as Texacala' s real-life struggles with alcohol and heroin in the latter half of the 1980.

Member appearances in film

During the Horseheads’ heyday, Tex appeared in a few small movie roles, including ''

Border Radio ''Border Radio'' is a 1987 independent film directed by Allison Anders, Dean Lent and Kurt Voss. Summary A document of the last days West Coast punk rock, the story follows two musicians and a roadie who haven't been paid rob money from a club ...

'' (1987), a gritty,

16mm 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical gauge of film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 and 35 mm. It is generally used for non-theatrical (e.g., industrial, ed ...

trailer-park dramedy starring

frontman Chris D., where she played a ditzy babysitter; ''Du-Beat-eo'' (1984), a comic-slop

pseudo-documentary A pseudo-documentary or fake documentary is a film or video production that takes the form or style of a documentary film but does not portray real events. Rather, scripted and fictional elements are used to tell the story. The pseudo-documentary, ...

about the LA punk scene, starring

Joan Jett Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...

and Stephen (Café Flesh) Sayadian's weirdo 1989 remake of '' Dr. Caligari'', where she played a

mental patient A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...

in a frightwig and a straitjacket. Tex also appeared in the 1985 film, ''The Boys Next Door'', as the member of a street band.

Collaborations

Until disappearing from the Los Angeles music scene in the 1990s, Texacala performed with all-girl cowpunk group, the Screaming Sirens. In 1987 she formed Texorcist along w/ Dave Catching on Guitar, Billy Koepke on Bass & Louie Dufau on Drums, In the late 1980s, Texacala participated in an all women's performance troupe of LA scene-makers, The Ringling Sisters, whose members all fronted Los Angeles based bands. Members of the group included

Pleasant Gehman Pleasant Gehman is an American author, writer, poet, actress, dancer and musician from Los Angeles. Career In the 1980s, she was the singer for the punk rock band Screamin' Sirens. Her articles on rock 'n' roll, American pop culture, sex, ...

(Screamin' Sirens), Iris Berry (Lame Flames), Debbie Dexter (Devil Squares), Debbie Patino (Raszebrae) and

Johnette Napolitano Johnette Napolitano (born Jonette L. Napolitano; September 22, 1957) is an American singer, songwriter and bassist best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter, and bassist for the alternative rock group Concrete Blonde. Early life Johnette Nap ...

(

Concrete Blonde Concrete Blonde was an American alternative rock band from Hollywood, California. They were initially active from 1982 to 1995, and reunited twice: first from 2001 to 2004, and again from 2010 to 2012. They were best known for their album ''Bloo ...

). Tex's role in The Ringling Sisters involved performing as a story teller and back-up singer. Texacala recorded a solo record in 1998, and subsequently toured extensively with a backing band the TJ Hookers, as well as fronting Texorcist and working with Los Platos. In 1994 she formed Burnin' Bridges along with former Texorcist Bassist Billy Koepke. They recorded 10 songs for a planned record with Richie Ramone producing but the record was never released.

Reunion

In 2007, Tex & the Horseheads reunited and played shows around the LA area. Texacala has since moved to

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

and has remained active in music there.

Future plans

Texacala has stated that she plans to write a book detailing her experiences as a musician. She has also stated that she plans to "Have some new songs coming out on itunes and plan on putting them all on cd soon for the website I'm working on. I want to make as many of my recordings available as possible, posters, flyers."

References

External links

Video on Youtube of Big HousePart III
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tex and The Horseheads Cowpunk musical groups Punk rock groups from California American death rock groups Punk blues musical groups Enigma Records artists