British beat legends Madness hit the road, and the studio, again.
Legendary ska/two-tone hitmakers Madness have been surprising all comers with huge comeback performances over the European summer, including slots at Bestival and Glastonbury, and are now planning new material.Singer Suggs told the UK's Times, "We're playing places we didn't even play when we were in our pomp. Like in France, 60,000 people went fucking bananas. When they see Madness they see something they have never seen before. We're not Arctic Monkeys, we're not the Rolling Stones, but we're not The X Factor either. Somewhere in that grey area, outside the norms of the music business, Madness exist."
They've also decided that like a growing number of modern bands, they no longer need a record label to release their music. Manager Gary Blackburn suggested that Madness may give away a new album with a newspaper, much like Prince's last effort.
Keyboardist Mike Barson said, "Because the whole business is changing, it's about how you utilise that energy. Prince giving away his album would have been incomprehensible a few years ago. But that's just another way of doing it."
The band begin a headlining tour of the UK on December 6 and release a new single 'NW5' on December 17.
