Horrors' big plans

Tom and Joshua hint at speedy third album and 'massive' collaborations

30 July 2009 - They're on practically every festival bill this summer, have a Mercury Prize nomination for their second album Primary Colours now firmly under their belt, and a headline UK tour booked in for December.

But although they're remaining tight-lipped The Horrors have said they have some huge collaborations on the cards.

The band were keeping the details of their forthcoming plans under wraps but when asked what they've got coming up, Tom Cowan told 6 Music News: "We can’t talk about them. Rest assured, they are massive."

They also admitted they wish they could get cracking on their third offering amid their extensive tour of America and the UK, which takes them up to Christmas.

"If we were given half a chance yeah," replied Tom, "But we’re playing for the next six months and then as soon as that’s done, yeah, we’ll get in there [the studio].

"If we had the choice we’d probably do one month off and one month on, recording and playing, but you just can’t do that. It doesn’t make any sense to anyone else but you."

The Mercury effect

Primary Colours, produced by Portishead’s Geoff Barrow and music video director Chris Cunningham, has received a mountain of critical acclaim.

It has also made it onto the top 12 shortlisted albums for the Mercury Prize alongside the likes of Friendly Fires, Florence And The Machine, Glasvegas, Speech Debelle and The Invisible.

Tom reckons it is the one music industry nod that can actually catapult a band’s career.

"If we had the choice we’d probably do one month off and one month on, recording and playing, but you just can’t do that."
Tom Cowan

"I think there’s a lot of awards that get thrown about and they actually don’t really, at the end of the day, have any effect," he explained.

"If you win an Oscar and you’re an actor that’s a really big deal but if you get a Brit Award it doesn’t really make a difference to your career that much, but the Mercury seems to be the one that can have the big effect."

Joshua Hayward said making the album was an "intense" process which brought the band closer together, but that wasn't much of a change.

"When we were writing it, we worked incredibly long hours and we just lost ourselves in our own little world," he said. "I think that’s why it came out like it did.

"It definitely brought everyone together but we only really see each other anyway, it’s quite sad. We’re quite an insular group."

The Horrors are set to perform at Field Day festival in London's Victoria Park on Saturday 1 August.

Georgie Rogers