The band is fronted by co-founder, DJ and producer Jamie Appleby (aka James Ash), and lead singer Natalie Bassingthwaighte. Drummer Cameron McGlinchey and guitarist Tim Henwood (of The Androids & Palace of the King) complete the live line-up of the band.
Co-founder Steve Davis and Ash's wife, Melinda Appleby, often contribute to the songwriting process but choose to stay out of the spotlight. Appleby also provided lead vocals on some pre-Bassingthwaighte materiel, including the 2002 single Give Into Me.
Ash and Davis first met in London in 1989. Before forming Rogue Traders in 2002, the duo worked together on various projects, most notably dance act Union State.
In 2003, they released their debut album as Rogue Traders, titled We Know What You're Up To. Singles Give In To Me and Stay? (the latter featuring Ash on vocals) were both minor top 100 chart tracks in Australia. However their re-working of INXS' Need You Tonight, One Of My Kind, managed to achieve considerable success, peaking at #10 in the ARIA charts and scoring them an ARIA award.
After the success of One Of My Kind, Ash and Davis decided to form a fully-fledged band and returned in 2005 with their sophomore album Here Come The Drums featuring vocalist Natalie Bassingthwaighte. Bassingthwaighte had previously risen to fame in Australia as an actress on the television show Neighbours, and her roles in critically acclaimed stage musicals such as Grease, Rent and Chicago. Davis began working solely as a songwriter for the band and hid away from the spotlight.
The band went on to have major success in Australia, becoming of the biggest pop groups in the country with a string of consecutive hit singles and tours. In 2007 they released their third album, Better In The Dark. After embarking on a sold-out tour in 2008 in support of the album, Bassingthwaighte and McGlinchey, who had met in the band and been dating for quite some time, announced they would be parting ways with the group. Bassingthwaighte went on to pursue a successful solo career and married McGlinchey in 2011.
In 2009, indie pop singer/songwriter Melinda Jackson (nicknamed Mindi, so not to be confused with Ash's wife Melinda Appleby) joined the group as their new frontwoman along with Peter Marin replacing McGlinchey on drums. They released one album, Night Of The Living Drums, but failed to meet the success of previous efforts despite receiving positive reviews and the band were subsequently dropped from the label and went on an indefinite hiatus.
In 2015, it was announced that Bassingthwaighte and McGlinchey would be returning to the band for the 10th anniversary of Here Come The Drums. The band have since been performing live at various events around Australia.
In March 2017, Bassingthwaighte revealed they were writing new music, and in early April the band hit the studio for their first recording sessions. They have since performed 3 new songs live: "To The Disco", "Love Drunk" and "We Can Move Closer".
Their first new single in 12 years, "To The Disco", was released in Feburary 2023 which interpolates "On Your Way To The Disco" from their album "Better In The Dark" with the Skatt Bros 1979 cult classic "Walk The Night". "On Your Way To The Disco" was meant to be the 4th and final single from "Better In The Dark" back in 2008, but was scrapped when Bassingthwaighte left the band.
The band have confirmed "We Can Move Closer" will be released in 2024.
We're Coming Home
Rogue Traders Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hurtin' much more than it did before
I'm always playin? the hero
Cleanin? your mess as you walk out the door
I'm counting things'll change now
Taking it back where it all began
Don't like this merry-go-round
We're coming home, we're coming home
You know it's now or never
No afterglow this time I know
But I'm feelin' kinda better
We're coming home, we're coming home
You know it's now or never
This time I know, this time I know
It's going on forever
I'm counting down to zero
Diggin' my heels in the dirt again
You're not a superhero
Savin? the world to the bitter end
I think it's time that you knew
I'm seein? it all now in black and white
I'd do it all to save you
Changin? the world ain't gonna make it right
We're coming home, we're coming home
You know it's now or never
No afterglow this time I know
But I'm feelin' kinda better
We're coming home, we're coming home
You know it's now or never
This time I know, this time I know
It's going on forever
See me walk away
You know it's now or never
See me walk away
I'm feelin' kinda better
See me walk away
You know it's now or never
See me walk away
We're coming home, we're coming home
You know it's now or never
No afterglow this time I know
But I'm feelin' kinda better
We're coming home, we're coming home
(See me walk away)
You know it's now or never
This time I know, this time I know
(See me walk away)
It's going on forever
I'm feelin' kinda better
The lyrics to Rogue Traders' "We're Coming Home" talk about a relationship that has gone through some tough times and is now on the verge of breaking. The singer is hurt and tired of being the hero and cleaning up the mess left behind. Despite this, they still hold on to hope that things will change and try to make it work but are losing patience with the endless cycle of problems. They decide to come home, but this doesn't necessarily mean a physical location; it's more of a metaphor for returning to a place of comfort and safety. They know that things may not be perfect, and there may be no afterglow, but the decision to go back feels right, and they're feeling "kinda better."
The song's chorus is both hopeful and empowering as they sing about how it's now or never and that they have to seize this opportunity before it's too late. They can't keep going in circles and have to stand firm and believe that they can make it work. The lyrics acknowledge that it won't be easy, but they're willing to put in the effort to save the relationship if that's what it takes.
Line by Line Meaning
You know we're falling to zero
We're losing everything we had and our situation is getting worse.
Hurtin' much more than it did before
The pain we're experiencing is much more intense than before.
I'm always playin' the hero
I'm always trying to be the savior and fix your problems.
Cleanin' your mess as you walk out the door
I'm always cleaning up the mess you leave behind as you walk away.
I'm counting things'll change now
I'm hoping that things will improve from now on.
Taking it back where it all began
We're going back to the starting point where everything began.
Don't like this merry-go-round
I don't like this cycle of repeating the same mistakes over and over again.
Gotta believe, believe we can
We need to have faith in ourselves and believe that we can overcome our problems.
We're coming home, we're coming home
We're returning to a place where we feel at home.
You know it's now or never
We need to act now or else it may be too late to make a change.
No afterglow this time I know
There won't be a positive outcome or result this time around.
But I'm feelin' kinda better
Despite the lack of positive outcome, I am feeling somewhat better.
This time I know, this time I know
I'm certain this time that things won't change.
It's going on forever
The cycle of repeating our mistakes will continue indefinitely.
Diggin' my heels in the dirt again
I'm putting up resistance and refusing to back down this time around.
You're not a superhero
You can't save the world and fix everything on your own.
Savin' the world to the bitter end
You're trying to save everything until the very end, no matter the cost.
I think it's time that you knew
I think it's important that you understand something.
I'm seein' it all now in black and white
I'm seeing the situation in a clear and uncomplicated manner.
I'd do it all to save you
I am willing to do anything to help you and save you from your problems.
Changin' the world ain't gonna make it right
Making big changes won't necessarily solve our problems.
See me walk away
Watch me leave.
We're coming home, we're coming home (See me walk away)
Despite leaving, we're still coming home to a familiar place.
This time I know, this time I know (See me walk away)
I'm certain that things won't change, even as I leave.
I'm feelin' kinda better
Despite the situation, I'm feeling somewhat better.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JAMIE GRAHAM APPLEBY, MELINDA JEAN APPLEBY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
horrorpilating
These guys did at least one album pre-Nat-Bas that rocked, kicked and went off like a frog in a sock - would be great if we could see some of the clips from that on YouTube.... I still catch myself singing "If you want to leave me now/I won't be standing in your way..." as I clean up around the house...
Maddy H
I saw them peform live last night they were FANTASTIC!!
peachcappuccino
They were SO GOOD. Wish they had lasted longer! <3
Andrew
brilliant song. wish they could tour the UK
diandra a
Love this song!
Judge Éomer
Absolutely, the majority of bands with talent seem to be nigh unknown. It's understandable with bands that play fairly obscure or non-mainstream genres, but others are incexplicably underrated. Not that it matters, although one disadvantage is that, especially with foreign bands, the obscurer talents have less gigs abroad.
Jay N
Will never get old!
purana
I'll rip some more from tv when I see them on :) and yes Rogue Traders rock. WIll be seeing them in concert in Sydney in a few weeks time. Saw them when they were backup band for Kelly Clarkson when she was out in Sydney months and months ago.
Toni Musgrave
This song meant everything to me. I attempted suicide because I wasn't happy. This song became my anthem to get home.
Lara Mayer
THIS SONG IS REALLY COOL!!!!!!! I loveeee it!