Salford-based duo the Ting Tings – Katie White (vocals and guitar) and Jules de Martino (drums) – make catchy, danceable pop songs with nods to 70s New Wave and disco under their modern sheen.

A slot on the NME tour (alongside The Cribs, Joe Lean and the Jing Jang Jong and Does It Offend You, Yeah?) helped to boost their profile among Britain's kids, and single Shut Up And Let Me Go has been picked as the soundtrack to a new iTunes advert. With their debut album We Started Nothing out on May 19th and an American tour coming up, we spoke to Katie about the shape of Tings to come. (Sorry…)

Three's A Crowd - How would you describe your album?

Katie White - It's quite unorthodox – we produced it ourselves and it's full of these crazy noises that you probably wouldn't use if you were a professional. We did all that. I'd say it's sincere homemade pop. There's a divide between bubblegum manufactured autotuned ten-writers-involved pop on one side and indie on the other, and there doesn't seem to be a lot in the middle. We're making pop songs as well, but they're made by people that really mean it.

TAC - You don't sound like you have much time for the bubblegum. Isn't there a place for manufactured pop?

KW - Yeah, I'm not knocking it. I grew up listening to it. I had a Spice Girls pencil case. I didn't really hear the Smiths and stuff like that until later. But I couldn't do it, I couldn't ever be in a band like that – I'd find it really hard to get up on stage and be really passionate and expressive about something that I didn't create. Fair play to people that want to do it. I like Rihanna, for example. I love Umbrella, I think it's an amazing song.

TAC - Tell us how you and Jules met.

KW -It was about four and a half years ago at a rehearsal studio in London. I was in a band, and he was either with a band or in a band, I can't remember which.