Q: Do you guys enjoy meeting with your fans, including chats?

Savage Garden: I love this. I love a conversation. I'm not always comfortable being a person on a pedestal. It can make a meeting kind of uncomfortable. I'd much rather run into a fan on the street than I would have them meet me backstage....

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People Online: We're talking right now with Darren Hayes of pop sensation Savage Garden, whose newest single, "The Animal Garden," was released earlier this year. Darren Hayes -- welcome!

Darren Hayes: Thanks. Can I start by saying one thing? There's been a lot of confusion on the Internet about chatters on the Internet talking to Savage Garden. If you've been talking to people on the Internet, Daniel and I don't go into chat rooms, so it's not us. But hello, I'm happy to be here.

People Online: Here's our first question...

Question: I love your music! Do you know how many tracks there are going to be on the new album?

Darren Hayes: At the moment, there's 13. And we've got another two songs that will be B-sides. So there's 15 brand new songs kicking around.

Question: Since the new album is being recorded in California, what are you guys doing after long days in the studio?

Darren Hayes: We are having a blast. We're at a place called WallyWorld. We've spent our downtime on motor scooters and 4-wheel-drives playing roller derby. Lots of boy things. I hang out at the local Starbucks, and everybody there knows my name now.

Question: What will the next single be like? A slow love song like "Truly" or upbeat like "I Want You" or "The Animal Song"?

Darren Hayes: We don't know. At the moment, I can just tell you that I love this record. I'm always going to say it's the best thing we've ever done. It's really emotional. There's about a third of the record upbeat and poppy, and another good chunk of it is very emotional. I don't think there's anything on there as innocent as "Truly Madly Deeply." It's very electronic.

Question: Since you guys hit it big, things have changed a lot in your lives... is there anything you would take back, to change any event that has taken place, or are you perfectly happy with your success?

Darren Hayes: I was talking to my mother last night about that. I wouldn't change a single event in my life, good or bad. It makes you who you are. You bend and shape yourself according to your experiences. The present wouldn't be the present day without past experiences, good or bad.

Question: Do you have any other hobbies or aspirations besides music and writing?

Darren Hayes: At the moment, I'm kind of preoccupied with home things. I've just bought an apartment in Manhattan. It's kind of become my baby. I keep saying this, but we get paid to do our hobby. So what I would do in my free time is kind of taken up in my career. So besides my obsession with "Star Wars," I'm kind of a simple guy. There is one thing -- American diners. I'm fascinated with them. From New York, I've driven to Boston and Washington. In California, I drove to Sacramento, just little dives. I visit diners and I compare them to diners in my little diner book I just bought.

Question: Will Daniel be singing in any of the songs on the new album?

Darren Hayes: I don't think so. That's like asking me if I'll be playing any instruments. No.

Question: Darren and Daniel, do you know if Anna Maria LaSpina will be coming with you on tour again? And how is her solo career going?

Darren Hayes: We would love her to come on tour with us. She has a permanent job with Savage Garden if she wants it. Anna is a dear friend of mine, and she's currently working very hard with a publishing company writing songs and working with record companies about a deal. But it takes a long time, so we'll see.

Question: Is any of your new material influenced by acts on the charts today? What kind of music are you into now?

Darren Hayes: I don't know if any of the music on the new album is influenced by the top 40 at the moment. A good chunk of it was influenced by Madonna's "Ray of Light" album. And it was influenced by a group called K's Choice. But really, every time we sit down to write a song, we're drawing from influences from birth right through to the present day. I love songs. For instance, the new TLC song, I think is incredible. So we'll bring that song into the studio and say, "What is it about that song that sounds so magic? And how can we bring the same magic into our music?"

Question: When you tour again in 2000, will you be using the same backup band?

Darren Hayes: Some of them.

Question: If you could do a duet with anyone, who would it be and why?

Darren Hayes: Good question. That's a really good question: Anna Maria LaSpina because she's the only person on the planet that I think my voice fits with like a glove.

Question: What difference do you see in your fans in America compared to those around the world?

Darren Hayes: American fans are less excitable. Very down to earth, and I like that. They can often have conversations with me on the street rather than screaming hysterically. And I love a chat.

Question: In an interview a while back, when asked about what we could look forward to in the new album, Darren replied it would be a mix of pop and trip-hop, and since "The Animal Song" is totally opposite from that, what kind of sound should we be gearing up for?

Darren Hayes: I think there's only one song on the record that has elements of trip-hop. I don't even know if we said that. There's only one trip-hop song. The pop is very pop. And the ballads are very sad. It's not so much a record about music fashion as opposed to songwriting. It's definitely a different style of songwriting on this record. It's more about moods and emotions. At first glance, it's probably going to look like quite a sad album. There's a lot of heartache on there. But overall it's a very positive record. It's a record about getting through and living through difficult situations and coming out on the other side. If anything, "The Animal Song" is like the happy ending to this album.

Question: What's your most memorable event while performing?

Darren Hayes: Usually embarrassing ones. Falling off stage in your hometown is always a favorite. Being mobbed on stage in Miami. Performing to 40,000 Hindus in India.

Question: Is it harder for you guys to work together since you two are in two different locations?

Darren Hayes: No. We are getting along better than ever. We did write together for this album. I think the media hyped it up a lot because I was in America and Daniel was in Australia. But I flew home a few times and Daniel came to San Francisco prior to the recording of the album to finish writing songs with me. And we've since written another two in the studio whilst recording.

Question: Do you take time off for family?

Darren Hayes: There's not a lot of time off in this business. We just took nine months, so that probably qualifies.

Question: What is your personal favorite song that you guys do?

Darren Hayes: It's a brand new song on the album and it's called "Two Beds and a Coffee Machine."

Question: How did you come up with the name Savage Garden and what does the name mean?

Darren Hayes: See Ann Rice.

Question: In what ways have you grown since the debut album?

Darren Hayes: In so many ways. Personally and musically. I'm four years older than I was when it all started. I think that our success and our experience so far has taught us more about life than I've learned in 26 years on the planet. It's been very fulfilling.

Question: Do you guys enjoy meeting with your fans, including chats?

Darren Hayes: I love this. I love a conversation. I'm not always comfortable being a person on a pedestal. It can make a meeting kind of uncomfortable. I'd much rather run into a fan on the street than I would have them meet me backstage, because there's so much more expectation when you're seen as "the pop star."

Question: Hey guys, I really love your music, and I was wondering where you get your inspiration for your lyrics?

Darren Hayes: Everything that we write is based on personal experience. And when we write together, Daniel and I just inspire each other. He comes up with a piece of music and it triggers a memory in me, and we're constantly building off each other.

People Online: We have time for one last question from the audience.

Question: When do you guys estimate the new album will be released, and can you tell us a little bit about it?

Darren Hayes: Hopefully August of this year. There will be a first single from it in July. It's really colorful, very energetic, painfully honest. And I don't know, it just feels like 10 steps from where we've come from. I'm very proud of it at the moment. I just want to say thank you to everyone for your support and your love and your patience. I can't wait to give you this big present and get back on the road and play the songs for you live. Thanks for such a beautiful life.

People Online: Thank you, Darren -- any final comments before you have to leave?

Darren Hayes: I have one final comment. Up until recently, it has been extremely difficult to determine which is the order line and which is the pickup line at a Starbucks. And I'm happy to see that more and more Starbucks are beginning to place signs for the pickup and the ordering. Thank you.

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