A lot of bands like to define their music by certain genres '€” pop, punk, rock or grunge among others '€” but for Australian-based The Cat Empire, their works cannot be defined or limited by a single word.

While The Cat Empire is referred to as an '€œAustralian ska and jazz'€ band by the media; this depiction does them no justice, as their performances also include elements of funk, reggae and even hip-hop to entertain audiences '€” and to prompt people into dancing all night long.

The Cat Empire trumpet player and vocalist Harry James Angus said that the band'€™s constant interest in new musical styles made it hard for any member to define the band by genre.

'€œOur genre is always been difficult to answer, because we never have a definite first choice of genre,'€ Angus said recently during The Cat Empire'€™s visit to Jakarta. '€œThe band has been playing for 14 years now. Our tastes have changed.'€

'€œMaybe some of the things we used to be interested in, we are not so interested in now. But we always talk about genre because we are going into so many genres. But really, I think our main aim is to have no genre. You know, to just do anything we like anywhere in the world,'€ he added.

The Cat Empire also includes in its core line-up Felix Riebl on percussion and vocals, Will Hull-Brown on drums, disc jockey Jamshid '€œJumps'€ Khadilawa, keyboardist and backing vocalist Oliver '€œOllie'€ McGill and bassist Ryan Monro.

During performances, however, they often feature The Empire Horns, a brass duo comprising trumpet player Ross Irwin and trombone player Kieran Conrau.

The band'€™s origins can be traced back to Jazz Cat, a Melbourne-based band led by Steve Sedergreen. The nine-piece group, with members coming from different schools and backgrounds, debuted at the Manly Jazz Festival in Sydney.

In late 1999, Jazz Cat spawned The Cat Empire, originally as a three-piece, with McGill, Riebl and Monro.

(Courtesy of The Cat Empire)
The band'€™s name was taken from the title of a drawing by Riebl'€™s younger brother, Max; while its distinctive cat'€™s eye icon, known as '€œPablo'€, was created by McGill'€™s father, Ian McGill.

For a few months, both groups performed on alternate Thursdays at Dizzy'€™s, a club that Sedergreen partially owns. They started playing gigs at other clubs, including Bennetts Lane. The band expanded in July 2001 by adding Angus, Hull-Brown and Jumps.

The Cat Empire released a self-titled debut album in 2003, followed by five more: Two Shoes in 2005, Cities: The Cat Empire Project in 2006, So Many Nights in 2007, Cinema in 2010 and Steal The Light in 2013.

Angus said that the band had faced a massively changing music industry in their journeys, but there was one thing that had not changed among its members: a willingness to make music that comes from the heart.

'€œThings have changed a lot since 1999, as we all know. I often think what we call the music industry really has only been around for maybe 50 to 100 years but music has been around forever,'€ Angus said.

'€œWhatever the changes in our technology, maybe it will affect the industry in one way or another but music is fundamental human expressions. It'€™s always there. The technology '€” we just deal with it as it comes,'€ he added.

Another unique attribute of the band is that despite of the fact of they are Australians, they also like to perform some songs in Spanish or french.

'€œIn one of our songs, there is a line in it saying music is the language of the soul. It'€™s a lot easier to learn the musical language of another culture than it is to learn how to actually talk to someone. You know, that is the beautiful thing about music. Everyone can communicate on an emotional level,'€ Angus said.

Band members say that good music should sound good and convey messages on social issues, regardless of boundaries.

'€œI think how we classify good music or how I classify good music is very personal. It'€™s just a matter of taste or opinion but for me, the main part of a good music is a good intent,'€ Jumps said.

The Cat Empire has previously dedicated performances to raise awareness on environmental issues both in Australia and beyond.

For example, the band was involved in a fundraiser opposing a proposal to dump three million cubic meters of dredged seabed onto the Great Barrier Reef in 2014 and members have also spoken on climate change during a concert organized by the Australian Youth Climate Coalition (AYCC) at Federation Square in Melbourne.

Riebl said that the band'€™s activism, both on personal and group level, was a way of showing their responsibilities as musicians.

'€œWe have been a touring band for most of our lives. We play live music and so therefore, we have a big carbon footprint,'€ Riebl said.

'€œI believe that it [activism] is something we have to continue to be on top of both personally and as a group. And it is constantly changing and we are certainly not perfect but we do what we can when situations arise for us to contribute for social issues like this,'€ he added.