No matter how many hits you get on YouTube, you can still be struck down by food poisoning. That’s the lesson I learn as I arrive at O2 Academy (after skidding there via the treacherous ice that has turned January 2010 into Narnia circa White Witch) and am informed that I won’t be chatting to OK Go’s regular interview duo of lead singer Damian Kulash and bassist Tim Nordwind. Damian’s downing vitamins trying to fend off a nasty bug, so I’m one man down…

“Yeah, he’s not feeling great,” confirms Tim, who is happily charming enough that we’ll forgive Damian the luxury of vomiting his innards out before he’s due onstage.

OK, so your lead singer might be feeling a little bit peaky, but what about the ‘invisible robot’ named Jorge – pronounced ‘Hor-hay’, I’m quickly told – who, Facebook claims, does the band’s bidding? “He’s doing well. He’s actually back in New York coming up with various inventions,” Tim lets on enigmatically, a cheeky glint in his eye.

I shouldn’t expect less really; since they told us all to ‘ge-ge-ge-get get over it’ back in 2003, OK Go have forged a reputation alongside We Are Scientists as perky pranksters pedalling both catchy pop-rock and mind-boggling ploys to capture our attention. You’ll no doubt be aware of them foremost for synchronised dance antics atop treadmills in the inescapable video viral for 2006 single ‘Here It Goes Again’, but don’t write them off as mere comedy shape-pullers.

“The whole dancing thing came about as a spontaneous way to surprise people and have fun doing that,” Tim explains. “We never expected it to become as huge as it did and it was fun while it lasted, but it’s inevitably not as fun when people expect you to break out into dance during every gig.”

I suggest that, given the snowy scene outside, tonight might see the debut of OK Go On Ice? Tim laughs: “Maybe that’s one for the future.”

So, since the band’s alternative workout almost made attending the gym appealing, what have the band been up to? Like, musically? “Since we were last in the UK, we’ve been working on our third album ‘Of the Blue Colour of the Sky’, which is out now.”

The album, the band’s third, is produced by Dave Fridmann, who has lent his hand to records by MGMT, the Flaming Lips and Weezer among others. Lead single ‘WTF’, featuring a video that is the very definition of ‘kaleidoscope’, bears a “psychedelic” edge and is a song about being “confounded by a woman”.

This theme is explored further throughout the album’s 13 tracks. “We were touring for two and a half years all around the world, and then we came back home and each of us were dealing with various relationships. The record explores that situation of sort of returning to real life and the changes that brings.”

Like those other great purveyors of American power pop They Might Be Giants and Fountains of Wayne, clever lyrics and hook-heavy choruses have not been shy throughout their back catalogue. Can we expect the same ingredients? “With this one, the music came first. The way we approached it was to find a groove together and then build the song from there. We were aiming for a more minimal sound – if you can feel the emotion simply from the drumbeat, then you’re on the right track.”

The band’s affinity for the Pixies recently led to them joining Frank Black himself for a quick rip through ‘Debaser’ at a benefit show. “Obviously, we’re quite keen on progressing our own sound as a band but we never shy away from acknowledging the artists that influence us. On this record, there’s an obvious Prince influence and the Pixies have always been a primary influence.”

As well as joining their idols on stage, Tim and his band members also joined forces with brass rock funk (oh my!) band Bonerama to record an EP, entitled ‘You’re Not Alone’, that continues to raise funds for victims of Hurricane Katrina. “Some of the proceeds went to funding a new house for this old New Orleans soul legend, Al Johnson, who had lost everything. It’s so gratifying because it’s a manageable cause where you can see the results bettering lives.”

Spoken on an eve when the first reports of the extent of the Haiti disaster are dribbling in, these words are lent an extra poignancy. However, the band curtail their own potential disaster to remind everyone that, while they don’t need exercise equipment to shine, they can put on one hell of an energetic and – yay! – vomit-free show. Damian’s all better (although a tad pale) and Tim’s promise that, although free of dancing, the show will still be “visual” is evidenced by celebratory confetti blasts every four songs or so, not to mention one heck of an acapella performance utilising church bells. It’s a rollickin’ good time and a wake-up call that these guys know how to do fun without being vacuous, demonstrating talent and a knowing irony throughout.

I’m just sad that, post-encore, there was no impromptu Torvill and Dean antics outside the venue. Boo!

Luke McNaney