"The first time we played in Beijing I remember some of our fans were arrested for dancing, but that doesn't happen anymore," Wanscher said.
It used to be that MLTR was one of the most pirated bands in Asia, according to its members. Richter claims the band has sold up to 15 million records, but many of these were bootlegs.
"We've got a big following in Vietnam and Cambodia even though we haven't released any records there. In China 95 percent of our stuff is pirated. We are huge in piracy," Wanscher said.
Like other bands, however, MLTR is coming to terms with the shift in sales technology and is learning to make money out of mobile phone downloads, ring tones and touring.
As for becoming rock dinosaurs, they were never fashionable to begin with so extinction any time soon isn't likely. Lentz said rock 'n' roll isn't necessarily a young man's game.
"For Justin Timberlake it is, for Mick Jagger it ain't. In the 1960s it was a youth thing but now it's like the [Rolling] Stones, a circus. Actually you can see better acts in hotel lobbies but people are still paying to see them."
"There's an element for us of being in a gang with buddies, doing what we do best," said Lentz, who writes film scores and ambient music in his own time.
The band members all have other projects and collaborate with other musicians. MLTR pays the bills, it seems, and has a life of its own.
We don't have to explain after 20 years, we've grown up together. It's doing what we were educated to do. It's like a machine and when we're with our fans it's like being home," Lentz concludes.
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