The Mint Chicks were a New Zealand
experimental noise rock/
power pop group (the band began to refer to their style of music as "troublegum" and have been referred to as anything from neo-punk to schizo-pop to the only half-serious genre definition of shit-gaze along with groups like
No Age and
Wavves) originally from
Auckland who relocated to
Portland,
Oregon, USA in 2007. They are known for mixing pop hooks and structures with elements of noise rock and experimental music and also for their exciting live performances, where Kody and Ruban Nielson have been known to climb P.A. stacks, hang from lighting rigs, destroy guitars, engage in self-harm and even attack the stage with a chainsaw.