"Probably the activity I'm most proud of was my collaboration with Nina Hagen on the song Don't Kill the Animals. We toured extensively in Europe and had a great time. It was the start of my dedication to animal rights and my firm belief that it's the next step in human evolution. I travelled across America to spread the word with PETA people and was glad to help raise the awareness.
"It took a while for old music-business wounds to heal; to recharge and regain confidence and for the 'brick walls' to become invisible again. My children have grown up and I feel it's time to connect with the other reasons for being in this world. I wasn't sure it could be done until I met Jude Rawlins, who convinced me to do it and do it now.
"Jude is the founder member of Subterraneans, and has taken time from his own projects to help me present my music. We put a great band together last July - Jude on guitar, Lydia Fischer on bass, Kirsten Morrison on keyboards, and Morgan King on drums. We're working together really well and having fun.
"People find it hard to believe, but I don't think too much about the way I look. It's something that's evolved through experiences, circumstances and necessity. Early influences were from the fantasy, science fiction, horror, and Western movies I saw as a child at the local cinema in Detroit. You could mix up images of the Gorgon Medusa, the Bride of Frankenstein and any of the Native American women from the Westerns - I always related more to the Indians than the cowboys - and it might resemble me on stage. And you can add a bit of Dusty Springfield for the eye make-up.
As well as planning a comeback tour, Lene says that she's "on a mission to prevent as many suicides as possible. I'm not talking about the terminally ill. It's those who are finding life impossible for emotional reasons that concern me. The world needs sensitive people. Somehow we have to find a way to survive amid the mountains of negativity that surround us."
