The Rebellion Tapes: La Katrina – musician, model and tattoo artist.

La Katrina plays bass guitar for the excellent Migrana Social and has quite a few more strings to her bow too. She’s a tattoo artist and model with a unique and striking look. Turning heads all weekend at Rebellion she took time out to chat to Gary Trueman  about her style influences and  the inspiration behind her image.

How old were you when you started thinking you wanted to look a little bit different?

“Since I was a child. My mother always did special hair styles for me. I remember everybody at school was looking at me like I was a freak. My mother was the first person to inspire me to be different.”

Is your mother quite alternative looking as well?

“No, my mother has a normal style. Maybe she wanted to express herself through me. And I love it.”

You have quite a lot of ink and you are a tattoo artist as well. When did you get your first tattoo and what is your favourite tattoo?

“I got my first tattoo when I was 17 but then I got it covered.  My favourite is my La Catrina skull which is an iconic image in Mexico City.  It was originally made by an artist called Jose Guadalupe Posada.  I really love all his art and the day of the dead art culture in Mexico City. That’s why my artist name is Katrina but with a K.”

Let’s talk about that amazing hair style. You do pin up and punk modelling and your hair style you wear on stage that you also wore for our photo shoot is a mix of liberty spikes and pin up curls. That must be unique. Have you ever seen anybody else wear their hair that way before?

“No I don’t think I have. I really like the rockabilly scene and I enjoy dancing. I also love the pin up look. I love the pin up culture but I also like punk. I like a lot of different things and have an eclectic taste. I think I express that in a lot of ways and especially in my hair style. That’s why I mix everything up.”

What product do you use on your hair?

“I use whatever.  Lots of hairspray. For my spikes I use a type of gel that hardens. I use animal friendly products. I use Manic Panic hair dye too”

With your make up who do you see as inspirations for your bold look?

“Well I like the Kat Von D brand and I love all her make up. But I’m inspired by pin up images.”

What makes Kat Von D so popular? So many models and performance artists use her make up.

“I admire Kat Von D because she is from Mexican roots. I love her tattoos because I am also a tattoo artist. I admired her from before she had a make up brand. When I learned she was vegan and all her make up was vegan, that was so cool.”

Your clothing is always immaculate and always fits with your make up and hair. You’re one of those people that always looks beautifully stylish all the time. Is that a conscious effort to always look amazing? Do you ever slob out and not bother?

“Only in my house when I go to bed haha. I always like to look pretty even if I’m tired and it’s a long day.  I can look pretty, then sleep. I’ve liked dressing up since I was little. My mother inspired me to do this since I was a child. She took me to ballet classes, to painting and I remember her training me to sing. I appreciate what she has done for me and she has inspired me so much. I really enjoy performing in front of my family.”

Are there specific pieces of clothing you wear on stage because they are more comfortable or is it all about the look?

“Oh no, some are very uncomfortable, but I don’t care. Sometimes it’s hard to walk with high heeled boots on but I can walk in ballet points so if I can walk in those I can walk in anything.”

You dance too.  You do Jive?

“Yes I love Jive. In Mexico it’s really getting more popular. The scene there is much younger than in other places in the world. I went to a big rockabilly festival and always the people from other parts of the world are older than those from Mexico. I think it’s really nice that the scene is full of young people.”

Interview and photos by Gary Trueman