Mindi Jackson was quite the breath of fresh air at the Logies (Australian Television awards) on Sunday night, and I think others are finally starting to see where I’m coming from. Performing their new single “Would You Raise Your Hands?”, the Rogue Traders tore Crown Casino a brand-new rectum with this corker of  a performance.

The performance is energetic, has a great dance routine (put together by the incredibly talented Squared Division, MINDI THEN JOINS THE DANCE ROUTINE TOWARDS THE END, there are green lasers and people in helmets – it’s exactly the kind of thing some second-rate Australian pop stars should take a look at before any future live performances. Mindi’s performance in particular was pretty great – you can see just how much stage presence she has and how good she is at entertainment; this was the performance of the night in an evening where the legendary k.d. Lang performed – let’s not forget this.

The single is really, really good too. And yes, it does sample Adam Ant but it does so with not only Ant’s permission but also absolute blessing. It’s a tiny fragment that just adds spark to an already brilliant pop single. I’ve spoken about the song before on the blog but now that it’s out there, perhaps a little bit more needs to be said.

“Would You Raise Your Hands?” is a certifiable Rogue Traders classic. It works just as well incredibly loud in my car as it does banging to a crowd at the Logies. It’s the kind of world-class pop they can take overseas and (hopefully) have a banging smash with. The chorus is a firebomb of excitement and the subject matter is one quite close and dear to a pop enthusiast like me’s heart. It’s so ready-for-radio it’s ridiculous and is exactly the kind of track the Rogues need to prove they’re here to stay after the flatline-response to their last single “Love Is A War”, which was fine but let’s face it – this is their real first single now, innit?

The single is available now on iTunes, and the album “Night of the Living Drums” (you may remember the Sneak Peak of that I gave you in January) is on its way, and thank God for that too because in a year without a new Sneaky Sound System album, it’s all up to the Rogue Traders to be the nations saviours of pop for 2010. And thank God also that the album is full of tracks to do just that – I can’t wait for everyone to hear “America” and be blown away by it as much as I was the first time I heard it, a track that’s shaping up to be my chosen Rogue Traders magnum opus.

More details on the album when I hear more about a release date, but needless to say I’m very excited and hope some of you are too.

Oh and you can watch the okay (but the Logies performance is leaps-and-bounds better) video clip for “Would You Raise Your Hands?” here.

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NEXT WEEK: Simon Curtis album review, and new interviews with both the Cassette Kids and Matt Van Schie.

Meet Mindi Jackson. She’s the new lead vocalist for the Rogue Traders.

Some of my fellow Van She fans that read this website might find Jackson’s voice a little familiar; in 2007, under the name Melinda Jackson, Michael and Nicky from Van She Tech took her track “Fall In Love” and gave it a corker of a re-swizz which ended up in my years-end best-of lists.

But now, Melinda is Mindi, and her first release with the Rogue Trader crew is the drum ‘n bass hybrid-pop stomper, “Love Is A War,” which sounds like Lene Lovich having it off in a dark alley-way with No Doubt’s back catalogue. Never a bloody bad thing.

Double hand-claps? CHECK. Amazing outfit? CHECK. Excellent hair-styling? CHECK. Non-offensive rap? CHECK. Ability to dance in very high heels and look effortlessly fabulous? CHECK. Of course, the less said about the food fight scenes the better; I have this incredible phobia of food touching my skin. Don’t ask.

I am COMPLETELY on board for this next, exciting phase of the Rogue Traders journey. I think that, perhaps the most exciting part, is the fact that Mindi looks more than comfortable in the group, whether it be in the clip or on the (usually) painstakingly boring Sunday Sunrise in an interview situation. There’s a star quality about her and yet, she’s – at the moment – not exactly a household name. The last time around, James and Co HAD a star already; but this time it’s that much different, and a whole lot more exciting.

What’s even more thrilling is the obvious appreciation both Mindi and James have for each other as artists, an appreciation that shows during that Sunrise interview – it’s effortless, there’s not a cringeworthy moment shared between the two of them, which speaks volumes I think, about the kind of guy James is, but also the kind of woman that Mindi is.

I can’t wait for the album, which is happening next year at some point. I know a few people are a bit sketchy on the track (from what I’ve read on Twitter through fellow bloggers posts, anyway) but, as per usual, there’s always something that strikes a chord with listeners on a Rogue Record. Even if you’re not necessarily keen on this first single, I can guarantee there will be something you’ll LOVE on the album. James recently told me they were working on a track that was a little bit early Sugababes. Bonza bonza bonza.

Extreme Rogue Traders/Mindi Jackson Appreciation Mania starts here.