The Asteroids Galaxy Tour

“Oh my gosh! You’re calling from Canada?! That’s so great! Is it snowing!?” Her exuberance and gorgeously contagious giggle gave off the same fun, free-for-all vibes that Out Of Frequency offers.

When and how did you meet Lars and how did the band really come to be?

I met Lars [Iversen] through the music scene in Denmark, in Copenhagen. It’s a small city, small scene, and everybody really knows each other. We played around with music at one point but we did different things. He worked in architecture and I was working as a bartender. One day he called me and said ‘Hey, I have a new song to try’, so I listened to his stuff and I was like ‘YES’, and we spent the whole summer of 2007 making music and giving it everything we’ve got. I’m not brilliant in the studio like Lars and with production and stuff, but we worked so well together and have such a great connection.

We promised each other we would do everything or nothing. We thought we had so many great songs and we just wanted to have adventures and travel and make music because that’s everything we love. We got a last minute call to open for Amy Winehouse, so we called our friends and were like ‘Yo! Wanna be in a band?’ and we just went for it.

Your music has been commercialized all over the world on T.V. shows, in ad campaigns, but when did you feel as though you had really made it in the music industry?

I don’t think about stuff like that too much. For us it’s important to be happy with our music and it’s our world and we love it and seek inspiration. You can feel happy about your work and feel good and fall asleep with a smile on your face and then you realize other people like it and it makes everyone happy and cheerful and it’s kinda surreal. I promised myself that I would remember to think about and enjoy everything. Believe in yourself! We played in Vietnam for a crowd of like 100,000 and I think it was being televised all over Asia and we were dancing in the middle of the big big outside crowd and we were thinking, ‘this is crazy’, and at the same time it feels natural. Sweating and dancing. We look at each other and think, wow this is beauty! This is so so wonderful. We love so many bands and buy music and get so excited listening to it, so to think that we can create that for other people is so great.

Was it surreal to you that your songs were being played on T.V. in countries all over the world?

It was never in Denmark, so people in Denmark don’t know about that. We told our friends and family and, they were like… OK. And you can show them on YouTube, but they’ve never really seen it. So we can walk around in Denmark and go into café’s, but people don’t know you. I kind of like it. People don’t know me at home. It’s wild. It’s one in a million [that we were chosen for the commercial]. I still don’t think about it and believe it. I’m really thrilled about it and I’m really happy that people get to know about us. It’s so important to have support like that when you’re on an independent label like us and so many other great musicians. There are so many great bands and so little money.

What do you feel has really helped the band find success?

I don’t know. Being played on the radio and having people write about you and blogging about you, that’s really strong. It kind of brings it all together. Every time people write about us and post pictures and support us… its really strong. It all went so fast, I was really nervous but sometimes you just have to jump right into it. Just look straight and count to three, jump in and do it again and again and again.

What is your favourite track on the album?

They all mean something special to us. Looking back at the creation and going back and forth with each song. What’s your favourite so far?

I told Mette that I kept going back to ‘Dollars in the Night’. That’s when she burst out into the song, which begins with a great Motown-feeling cry/scream. She was fully into the course, mimicking the beats when she stopped suddenly and started her soft giggles… “Yeah, that’s such a fun one! I really love the afro psychedelic back beat! It’s got a cool big band feel, don’t you think?”

What song do you think fans are going to respond to the most?

It depends. People who loved ‘The Golden Age’ are going to go for the catchy stuff with a great melody. You’ve got some singles and feature tracks and there are always people who really like our slower stuff and others who will love our high energy stuff. Our songs point in all directions – I think we will have to release different singles in different countries.

You are starting your North American tour in New York the day that Out of Frequency launches, how excited are you for that first New York show?

We can’t wait to play the new songs. We’ve been rehearsing with the band and trying new instruments and people are switching instruments, so it’s a bit dangerous, but we love it. We love America and we’ve been in Canada before and the culture is so different [from what we are used to] we just love it. It’s so inspiring for us!

You have always had a really fun, outgoing style, and create amazing outfits for stage. What influences your look and where do you get ideas for your outfits?

I have no idea! I’m not totally into fashion. I don’t know much about anything. I have lots of friends in the industry, but for me, it’s like, I don’t know what I like. I just bought some blue trousers in Vietnam in a strange store for older women’s fashion. I bought these pants with golden buttons and then I bought this glitter shirt in China Town in Bangkok and this glittery belt I got in Chicago. It doesn’t make sense, but I’m wearing it right now.

Its like, what’s the stuff you find on the beach? It’s like ginger coloured? Henning!?(Mette calls out to her manager in the other room) What do you call that thing you find on the beach? It’s like ginger coloured? Amber! It’s like finding Amber on the beach! I don’t know, but suddenly you see it. Its not everywhere, you don’t know how to look for it, but you see it and it’s perfect. I like big hair and a lot of lashes and a clear classic look. I like to combine it with street and comfort and a girlie side. Always glitter! I love glitter and sparkles. I must be a raven! Everything that glitters I go for it. Maybe I should consider getting a gold tooth?

You mentioned that you are big music fans. What music are you really into right now?

We kinda both like old music and new music. My favourite album from last year was PJ Harvey, Let England Shake. It’s genius. You have to listen to it! It’s got a lot of rhythm and blues in it. I really like it! Jay-Z and Kanye’s new music … It’s really experimental and clashing – not very main stream. They also play around with music and stuff. I like when you dare to play around and make a really interesting soundscape.

Your stage presence is so high energy and you can tell you all love to play and that you’re really having fun on stage.

It’s very important to us that we have a good time and share it with the audience. It tickles, you know? Can you do me a favour? Can you create a snowman on my behalf? I haven’t had a snow all winter and I really miss it!

The Asteroids Galaxy Tour play Toronto’s The Hoxton on Monday, February 6th.