Matt Willis has offered up a teaser of what to expect from Busted’s forthcoming fifth studio album.
The band has been hard at work on the project in Los Angeles, following the chart-topping success of their ‘Greatest Hits 2.0’ LP last year.
In a new interview with Principle Magazine, the bassist shared an update on the sessions, revealing: “We’ve got a bunch of songs, we’re trying to make the best album possible. So every time I walk in the studio, we’re trying to beat something, we’re trying to go, ‘Right, what else can we do? What does the album need?’.”
Centring the creative process on frontman Charlie Simpson’s “fucking unbelievable” vocals, he adds: “We’re trying to test Charlie really. We’re like, ‘Right, let’s hear you sing your fucking tits off, let’s really go for it’, and he’s stepping up to the plate. He is finding his feet as a frontman.
“When he sings, that is different from what me and James sing, like it just transcends genre, and considering he is known for being in Busted and Fightstar, which is like a screaming metal band, he’s actually got this other soulful side to him, which I think is not really heard enough.”
Over two decades since their formation, Matt says the band is working “better than we’ve ever worked in our lives” – and they also have a “secret weapon” in the form of ex-Bring Me The Horizon star Jordan Fish.
“He’s just the most fucking talented guy I’ve ever met in my life,” Matt beams. “It’s been the most enjoyable writing experience I’ve ever had.”
Last year, the band revealed they were already planning new music, following their recent tracks Good One and One Of These Days.
Speaking in RETROPOP’s May 2023 cover feature, Matt revealed: “We’re always thinking about the music,” he smiles. “Normally it takes that for us to press the button and the reason that this works is that we can re-record the songs with new people and it’s exciting. But moving forward, it will all be about new songs and that’s in the pipeline.
“The best thing about Busted now is that everything is us. Not that it wasn’t in the beginning, but we had a lot of other voices. Now, we listen to people because they know what they’re doing and they’re good at their jobs, but the buck stops with us.”
