Talking to Samantha Lim, lead singer of indie electro outfit teenagersintokyo, is like chatting to a friend you’ve had since high school. She’s welcoming, giggly and vivacious, making her an ideal subject to interview. Samantha opens up about her band’s debut album, travelling, UK celebrities and the man who often rears his ugly head in the most inconvenient of times, David Hasselhoff.

But first we talk about business, and the fact that the quintet has just gotten back from their exhaustive tour of the UK and Europe. “It’s cool to meet people off our MySpace Page, you know? Like, you have people from Germany write on your page that they can’t wait for you to come to their country and then you go there and get to meet these people,” Sam blurts out between chuckles.

Whilst overseas many great opportunities presented themselves to the teenagers, including an event of some description that was meant to involve Peaches Geldof, but she had to cancel. “At the last minute she got on a plane and went. We only got three hours’ notice. We were like, ‘Thanks Peaches Geldof!’”

Being stood up by a spoiled brat wasn’t the only thing the teenagers accomplished during their European travels. For one, they realised how responsive overseas audiences are to their music. “We have a group of dedicated people into our stuff here [Australia], but overseas it seems to be a lot easier for us to find fans. A lot of people overseas were quite quick to find out about us and be really supportive early on,” explains Sam.

The band plan to head back into the studio later on this year to work on their debut album, which Sam claims will be vastly different to their self-titled EP. “Were going in a new direction. Hopefully it’s a lot more thoughtful. [We’ve] matured and evolved, cause when we recorded the EP we had only just started the band. Hopefully it will retain the energy that is in the EP.”

So far the teenagers are not sure as to where the recording of the new album will take place. Sam admits that although there are great producers here in Australia, the idea of going overseas and working with other people is incredibly enticing. Also enticing is the thought of being able to make a living off of their music “The music industry isn’t as glamorous as you think it is,” says Sam, explaining that her and her four other bandmates ( Miska Mandic, Linda Marigliano, Sophie McGinn and Rudy Udovich ) also work full time jobs to sustain themselves.

So have there been any other crazy things that have happened in the world of teenagersintokyo? Sam goes on to describe her rather brief sighting of David Hasselhoff a few years ago at the ARIA Awards. “I bumped into him somewhere and I couldn’t actually say anything cause I was losing it too bad!”

Ah yes, there’s no escaping the Hoff…but back to business. Very soon the teenagers will perform four live shows in Brisbane, Sydney and Canberra. Sam details what fans can expect from a teenagersintokyo gig. “We’re a little bit shambolic. We don’t really have a game plan in mind; everything just kind of happens in that moment. It could go two ways. It could be a great gig, or it could be a bit of a mess, but we always try to have fun.”

Here’s where to catch your last glimpse of teenagersintokyo in 2008.

Thursday 14 August – Wolfgang, Brisbane

Friday 15 August – Spectrum, Sydney

Saturday 16 August – Transit Bar, Canberra

Sunday 17 August – Beach Road Hotel, Sydney