24 Dec, 2009

Mindi, what have you been doing prior to Rogue Traders?

M: Music has always been a massive part of my life. I grew up in a very musical family – I had a grandfather who was a tenor with Opera Australia and both my parents are really avid music lovers.

For the most part of my adult life I’ve been performing in different bands – just getting out there and doing as many gigs as I can and also really getting into song writing as well. So I have really just been exploring that and working quite hard in the studio and then, you know, I met James and the story goes from there.

Do you play any musical instruments?

M: For writing purposes I play a little bit of guitar and a little bit of keyboard. I have a studio set up at my house which is really cool.

James, when you saw Mindi on her MySpace page, what was it about her that ticked all the boxes?

J: We had seen lots and lots of people before we came across Mindi and she had a very different approach to most of them. What I really liked about Mindi’s MySpace is that she had a really strong sense of who she was -- someone with a great sense of personal style, who was very quirky and very interesting. I thought if I can be enchanted by Mindi on this MySpace page then I am sure other people will be too – which is what prompted me to get in contact with her.

Mindi, were you a solo artist before joining Rogue Traders?

M: I had done a little bit in terms of original music before, obviously sort of ‘undergroundy’ kind of things. I was in a band and doing some solo things after that as well, I did a couple of independent releases….

Tell us about your new single, Love is a war…

J: I think it sort of means two things. On the one hand, it is a song about the internal battle of the sexes, but it also symbolises what we were feeling at the time and that is: here we are going out into the public and we’re going to "plant the flag". We were very excited -- and at the same time, there is also a great sense of the unknown. That’s why the chorus says ‘hold on tight ‘cos here we go/ strap your asses to the floor’. That’s how we felt when we were writing the song.

M: Musically, it also symbolises where we’re going. It's a bit different from where we were, but still carrying the essence of the Rogue Traders. Our album is going to be pushing those boundaries.

Musically, who are your influences?

M: One of the first things I listened to as a child was Madonna’s debut album. So I was really into pop from an early age, but over the years I’ve kind of started looking back in music and re-discovering things. For example, Deborah Harry, in Blondie, Chrissie Amphlet, Cindi Lauper, Gwen Stefani, they have all been really big influences as well.

Do you have any favourite Australian artists at the moment?

M: At the moment, I love Eskimo Joe. I also have music envy for some of the big Aussie bands that were around in the eighties. It was a really unique time back then –looking at bands like INXS and Midnight Oil and Divinyls. To me, that was a really cool era – I grew up in that time so I couldn’t really be apart of the gigs but it was, from what I hear, it was a really unique time.

Are you concerned about any comparisons with former Rogue Traders frontwoman Nat Bassingthwaighte?

M: It is inevitable, but I am not overly concerned about it. I am just here being myself and I’m not wanting to replace Nat or be like her. I am just being myself. I am not the new Nat – I am the first Mindi, I just want to be true to who I am. [The band] and I have been working together for the best part of a year so we’re really 'entrenched'.

So you have been collaborating for a while in the lead up to the release of your single…

M: Yeah, it has been a long time in the making. We’re just excited to kick it into this next phase and let people know that the ‘Rogue-ys’ are back.


Rogue Traders' new single, 'Love is a War' is out now.