While dub/reggae music prevails in New Zealand, Minuit have never been afraid to stand apart with their unique electronic sound. This also stands true for the band’s lead singer Ruth Carr, we thought we would run some questions by this colourful and not to mention talented nzgirl…
How would you describe your music?
I would describe it as f***n’ cool…
Why did you call your new album The Guards Themselves?
I read the line “who will guard the guards themselves” and thought it was very cool and a beautiful use of words to convey meaning. Not too many words, not too few. Apparently it’s a Latin proverb. I don’t know the Latin…
What did you get to do on your new album that you didn’t on the others?
Boss the guys around more! And then cry if things didn’t go my way. You know – normal girl stuff.
What message do you want to get across with your music?
There really is no message. There are just strings of thoughts and bits of feelings put together in rhymes. Everyone has got bits and pieces going on in their lives, and these songs are bits and pieces of mine and other people’s lives that I see.
What issues did you face in making The Guards Themselves?
I lost my voice. My left vocal chord got paralysed and it lasted six months. The doctors didn’t know what caused it or if it would recover. Fortunately I had recorded all the vocals for the album, so the guys pottered away creating it. We really didn’t know if it would ever be released, or if I would ever be able to sing again. And then my voice came back – just like it had never been away or done anything naughty.
Do you have any pre-gig rituals?
I try to stay away from the gig before we play for as long as possible. Mainly cause it strains my voice to be talking to people over loud music before we go on.
What’s the highlight/lowlight of your album release tour so far?
Being able to sing again! There are no lowlights. At all. Not one.
What are you looking forward to in 2006?
Staying alive.
How hard is it to be a successful musician in NZ?
To be honest, it all depends how you quantify the word success. If success for you is all about getting famous and being massive, then NZ is a small place to do that kind of thing – especially if your music is not commercial or ‘main-stream’. (main-stream = dumb industry lingo) But if your term of success is getting to record the music you like and play it around the place, then that is easier to do. You just do it.
What is your greatest achievement as a band?
Staying together as a band! Seriously…
Name three records that changed your life and why?
These albums haven’t changed my life, but they’ve made bits of it fun:
The Prodigy – Fat of the Land. It’s hard and fast and got great grooves, and is a FANTASTIC album to practise drumming to.
Pine – all of their albums. They are friends of mine, and listening to them makes me feel all cutsie-pie.
Tricky – Maxinquay. A woman with an incredible R&B voice, but who uses it in a very un-R&B way. I like the eclectic nature of it.
What are you listening to at the moment?
So So Modern
Quick Questions:
On road or in the studio: On the road every time. I am very lazy when it comes to recording. I walk in, do two takes and then say: ‘right, that’s it, I aint doing anymore, ciao’… I feel that if you haven’t caught the emotion of the song in one or two takes, then you never will.
New clothes or vintage finds: Warning: the answer to this question will run on and on like some kind of lecture, as this is one of my pet peeves…: I absolutely f***ing HATE it when clothes and shoes are ridiculously expensive. Who are the morons who spend $2000 on a pair of shoes? What kind of drugs are they on? Hundreds of bucks for jeans – are they insane? How hard is it to whip up some jeans? The people who run the clothes world must be creaming it and cracking up at us. Me – I’m a cheap-as clothes girl. The most expensive thing I own is a pair of purple boots I bought in Vienna. They were a hundred bucks. I realise that this statement may make me seem pretty lame-arse. So be it.
Beer or Wine: Top shelf cocktails!!!!!!!!
Night in or night on the town: I like doing both in one night. Go out, have some fun, have a dance, see some great live music, have some laughs, then come home with some mates and sit around talking shit. And hopefully laughing. I like laughing. My aim in life is really only to laugh lots. I am over sadness.
Liselle
Pictures courtesy of Roger Grauwmeijer / RokPx.com and Allison Wills ©
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