[purlieu]

OWB is probably the band's most overtly 'musical' album, crafted in the studio, more ambient and soundtracky, so it makes sense to me that it's more Rick's than Karl's. It's probably my favourite - although I know I'm in a very significant minority on that - so it is a little sad to see it being brushed under the carpet by both the media and the band (to an extent), but I can hear some of what Karl's saying about their sound between BF and OWB. Barking's guest-producers make a lot more sense in context of this, too. With my own music I often feel that my most recent material is over-thought and lacking some of the innocence and spontaneity of my earlier stuff, despite being more popular and better produced. Something about those early records just feels more honest to me - so I completely relate to what Karl's saying here. It's brilliant that they've been able to rekindle that feeling without attempting the sort of 'return to our roots' record that never works.