It seems that inside every Australian actress there's a frustrated pop star.
The road from Neighbours to the charts is well trodden: Kylie, Natalie Imbruglia and Holly Valance all made it.
Now Natalie Bassingthwaighte, who plays Izzy in the soap, has made the switch with her group Rogue Traders. Their debut album Here Come The Drums is a mix of big dance beats and glam-pop vocals.
It's an odd brew and Rogue Traders don't pull it off, falling too often between the two genres. They are on firmer ground when using others' material: samples of Elvis Costello and Tears For Fears classics give life to otherwise leaden tunes.
Ironically, when Rogue Traders abandon the dance pretensions and Bassingthwaighte surrenders the mike to producer James Ash on Casting Aside, they sound like a band who have rediscovered their identity.
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