Was it just a funny name - Ladytron? Were you guys all over Roxy? Phil Manzanera's fly glasses? Bryan Ferry's suits?
Danny already had the name for the band long before we all met. He'd been a fan of Roxy Music and just thought it was the perfect band name. Thankfully, we all agreed.

Do you usually spend a session working on one thing, or do you bop around?
When we're recording demos, we always concentrate on one thing at a time. It's too confusing to mix things up. However, sometimes when we're in the recording studio, it's much healthier to leave something and come back to it later. That way you can take a step back and listen with fresh ears.

When and how did you start writing and doing your stuff, anyway? Your sound is so studied; I can't imagine a jam.
No, we're not really a jamming band! When we all got together in '99, Danny had written the majority of 604. Some of the tracks he'd actually written years before the record was actually made. Playing was the last thing we had on our minds. When we started out, we had this misconception that we didn't have to be a touring band. This idea was pretty much dashed a year or so later when we had to succumb to demand. Now though, it's the part we like best. It's great to see a reaction from a crowd.

Why head toward the robotic? Was it something you heard or something inside your deep cyborg heart? Something that came about after meeting Daniel and Reuben?
The boys are probably the most techy in the band. I met Danny in a club in Liverpool. He had a weekly night there for years and DJed every weekend. We just got talking, [and] he told me he wanted to get a band together and asked if I'd be interested in singing. I was pretty shy back then, though, and it took months for Danny to actually get me to do it. I thought he was an interesting character, and from then we became friends.

Everyone talks about your debut CD, 604, as a nearly religious experience. Do you still like the record, or does it bore you?
I didn't realize that's how people describe it. I do still love this record, perhaps because it reminds me of a specific time in my life. The melodies never fail to touch the heart.

Wouldn't you like people to speak so reverently about Light & Magic? I happen to love that one even more.
I'm pretty proud of Light & Magic, too, so if others like it then that's good enough for me. It doesn't have to be a near-religious experience. But hopefully in years to come, people will be able to come back to it and still appreciate the songs.

Would you ever want to do an over-the-top, chart-busting pop song? I mean, on Witching Hour, "International Dateline" comes close ... but those bloodbath lyrics!
Personally, yep, I wouldn't mind doing a big pop record. Growing up with Top of the Pops, I've always thought I'd love to be on it. Now though, the programme seems to be filled with a lot of shit. But perhaps Ladytron could change that.

With lyrics like those, do you feel as if you intentionally seek to skewer the biggest pop impulse - say, songs like "Fighting in Built Up Areas," wherein the softest, most melodious moment gets tagged with a down-turned chord or minor fifth or such. Are y'all getting emotional as you get older? More melancholy?
I guess we are. No, I think it's just we've been around a bit longer; we have more experiences to draw from, which can only be a good thing when it comes to writing the next album. As far as what they stand for, we don't really like to go into the meaning behind songs. We prefer for the listener to come up with their own ideas, saves us ruining it for them. Plus, it's all very personal to us, so it can be a bit heart-wrenching to discuss.

By the time we finish Witching Hour, what new should we know about Ladytron?
We are four warm-hearted individuals. There is no ice.

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