with my band. I'm full of ideas at the moment. I haven't really got a solid plan. I really feel this whole phase is a step on the way somewhere, but I'm not sure where that is. I'm trying to get the tools in place so I can get there. DiS: Are you feeling healthier now? Much. Totally. DiS: The last two albums have both been beset by illness. You were ill after you'd made Songs In A+E , which was weirdly prescient, and then again during Sweet Heart . That must've taken its toll? It's been horrible, seven years of illness, really. But I haven't got that anymore, and I really feel better for it. DiS: Did you ever think that the two things were linked? Album-making and illness? Yes. During the making of the last album, I was in hospital for 11 days for a completely unrelated thing, and when I was in hospital I remember saying that I wasn't going to make a record again and I was blaming the album for it. Obviously that's not the case, but I have to make that step, I have to prove to myself that I can stay fit and healthy during the making of an album. DiS: Does your feeling toward Sweet Heart change what you do when you play live? Do you not want to touch the album now? No, I will play it. We're going to see what it's like to play all of those songs. Part