Biffy Clyro pretended they were teenagers again when they penned their forthcoming album ‘Ellipsis’.
The Scottish trio took a year out following the release of their last LP ‘Opposites’ in 2013 because they felt they were losing the meaning of their band and, after months of struggles, they found the best way to return to their routes and create smash hits was to imagine they were 18 again.
Drummer Ben Johnston explained: "We didn’t want to go on cruise control.
"We’d much rather be terrified that everyone is going to hate this record than try and do something that is a surefire hit. And after a double album we wanted to make sure it was really streamlined and down to just ten to 12 tracks.
"We wanted to feel like we were 18 years old again, making our first record with that kind of impact and impression. Thinking no one gave a f*** again is actually quite healthy."
Over the course of their career, the band – who have released six albums since 2002 – have been through a lot, both professionally and personally, but they believe their friendship will always remain strong and intact.
Lead guitarist Simon Neil told The Sun newspaper: "There have been times when I’ve been the most horrible b*****d to be around. But now we genuinely laugh and giggle like teenagers. We are back to being a team.
"Making music and hanging out is the same as when we were teenagers and I would never want to change that."
Meanwhile, although the group, which consists of Simon, Ben and James Johnston, hadn’t initially planned to take an extended break after their last album, they’re convinced it was necessarily in order to come back stronger than before.
Simon explained: "A lot of this record [‘Ellipsis’] is almost like a bit of a fight record. We are rebuilding ourselves on the inside but also on the outside. And we were able to rebuild ourselves as people because we took time out.
"No one is invincible and everyone needs a break. Then when you come back you are stronger than ever. I think we all did that. And that’s why ‘Ellipsis’ is such an important record for us."