Planet Nowhere is the wholly outstanding new album from British indie rockers Razorlight. This is the first album with the classic line up of Johnny Borrell (vocals, guitar), Björn Ågron (guitars, piano), Carl Dalemo (bass) and Andy Burrows (drums) since 2008’s Slipway Fires. Joined by Reni Lane on keyboards, the band have created a genuine masterpiece with this collection of uplifting and thought-provoking tracks. We catch up with Andy at his home in Gloucestershire to talk about how it all came together.

The new album Planet Nowhere is released on 25th of October, so just in a couple of weeks time, and it’s the first album from the classic lineup of Razorlight sInce 2008. What sort of thoughts are going through your mind at album release time?

I think it depends on what album it is. For instance, if it was album of my own I’d probably be more nervous. But with Razorlight I feel quite zen about it to be honest. It’s a real journey that we’ve been on since we’ve been back together and to get to the stage where we’ve got an album coming out. In a way, I think having got here was probably more of a nerve wracking journey than actually getting to the point of having an album out. It feels like a really important part of us on this sort of second phase of being a band together again.

You came back together as a band back for live shows in 2021 and the love that came through from fans at both your own headline shows and those you played with Muse, Kaiser Chiefs and James was simply immense. At what point did you decide it was the right time to write some new music?

I think right from the off to be honest with you. In fact, even before we started playing as a band in a room, Johnny and I were writing songs over whatever medium we were able to back then in the Covid times. When we first got back together we played the old stuff but pretty soon after that we started making new music. We put a few fiercely independent singles out over the last few years, sounds like Call Me Junior – there was like two or three singles that we put out – so I think it was quite important to us to be creative and not go down the nostalgia road, even if it’s just for ourselves.

Well let’s talk about the new music and I’d like to start with the first single Scared of Nothing. This is a massively empowering track. For me, it just made me take on this spirit of ‘just go for it - what’s the worst that can happen?’ To what extent is that the essence of the song and how important is it to you that your music empowering?

Yeah, I think it’s pretty important that it is empowering. I think also as a band you don’t really want to do anything or play through anything or work on anything that you don’t all feel is empowering and having an effect emotionally and creatively. I think that song came pretty fast for Johnny. I think that song was one of the ones that kickstarted this record and the creative recording process. I think the fact that that song existed gave him a big boost of excitement and confidence, and I think often with songs and with music, it’s not about necessarily a song that you think is going to smash the charts globally or anything like that or end up in every playlist and radio station in the world. It’s got to be something that does something to you as the writer and then as you the band, and then whatever happens after that is in the lap of the gods. So I think that song was key, mainly because I think Johnny felt like a spark and I feel like we all intern felt that in the room and it just sort of flowed.

I loved reading how for the track Scared Of Nothing, for a long time in the studio it just wasn’t working and it’s really interesting to think that you went from that position to it actually being the lead single. At what point did the song’s fortunes change?

It’s funny isn’t it because I’ve basically just said something that contradicts what’s out there and something that you’ve read! (Laughs!) Maybe it went fast and then slow and then fast! The song Dirty Luck had lots of moments like that where, for me at least, I started to feel like ‘this is coming to life’ and ‘this is becoming something’, and I felt really excited that we were all together again doing this. There were about 4 or 5 songs that we started playing that we tried in the years previous and it just hadn’t been gelling or clicking and maybe Johnny hadn’t been feeling it, and for some reason Scared of Nothing and Dirty Luck really set the creative template and the mood for the rest of the album. From then on it really just slowed and then we went out to Spain and it just rocketed. So I think we did go through that sort of ‘walking through syrup’ for a little bit but then it just sort of picked up and found its feet.

It’s interesting when you were talking about how from a songwriting perspective it’s about you the writer and then it’s about you the band. But then when it’s out there for the rest of the world, that’s the bit you can’t control. In releasing this new album after so long, as a band do you always feel like you have to be ‘scared of nothing’? The fact is that Planet Nowhere is an absolutely incredible album, but even believing that yourself, is there a need to be thick-skinned? Or is it that you aren’t scared of failure? Do you brace yourself for the world’s reaction?

Definitely. The lyrics for the most part comes from Johnny and he has to feel it, so I don’t know exactly what he would say when it comes to Scared of Nothing but I imagine he would say that absolutely you should be scared of nothing. I think with music, if you believe in it and if you feel passionate about it and if you’re not scared then it’s got a lot more chance of translating because ultimately you’re then communicating with your audience and your fans something very honest, whereas if you’re writing to please other people or to fit in with whatever genre is fashionable at the moment, if you were to slip up you wouldn’t know in yourself that you have been absolutely true and fearless. So I do think there is an element of that kind of ‘scared of nothing’ thing that’s very important. I think you can only be true to yourself and do what you believe in and then let it go and let the world of musical ears decide.

One of the things I absolutely love about Razorlight is that your music has something to say and it inspires people to think differently. The first example I want to give is for the track U Can Call Me which repeats the line ‘I hate cocaine’. Another example is the song Cool People where Johnny sings ‘There are no cool people in this band, we hate those phoney motherfuckers’, taking a stand against a whole load of superficial crap. What extent is Planet Nowhere a protest record?

Yeah, maybe I guess! Again, the lyrical content is heavily Johnny but I know he’s definitely frustrated with a lot of things you’ve just talked about and the state of things, and perhaps he feels this is a very, very honest and real creation, and I fully agree. I can categorically say that it is and was, but whether it’s a protest? I don’t know if it is. I think there’s a few digs in there, aren’t there? Perhaps! It’s fun to read into it what you will!

Dirty Luck is an example of the wonderful story telling aspects of Razorlight’s music, and you’ve mentioned honest and real. I love the line ‘I just had to take that chance’, it’s such a wonderful sentiment and again empowering. How important is it that your music does tell a story?

Yeah, I think it’s really important! I’ve always really enjoyed the storytelling elements to a lot of Johnny’s lyrics and I think this album is definitely no exception. I think there’s some brilliant moments on this and Dirty Luck’s my favourite tune on there. I like that its got a bit of that to it and I think there is an empowering element to telling your story whenever it works with a song with a great melody and some chords in your band. I think it’s always very, very satisfying as a songwriter if you can articulate a story or those thoughts or what’s going on through something in 3 minutes that comes out of a couple of speakers. I think there’s something very satisfying and empowering about that, for sure, and I think that song is a very satisfying example of just that.

One thing I do need to pick up on is how the drumming on FOBF is especially and absolutely outstanding! The time changes, the unexpected twists, the breakouts and the thundering outro – it just stopped me in my tracks. Absolutely sensational! This must have been a song you particularly enjoyed recording?

Yeah, definitely! The whole of this record has been quite fun on that level and after all this time’s passed there was a lot of just being able to be as expressive individually and collectively as possible and I think that’s what comes through on a lot of the songs. Everyone get a bit of a moment, whether that be like a sort of ‘showy offy’ thing or maybe just something that felt particularly, as you said before, empowering. The ability to have had all this time pass, and as musicians having grown in confidence a little bit, I think that comes through. It’s interesting that you picked up on that tune but a lot of these are quite fun on the drums, but certainly that track and I’m grateful for you saying that.

For Planet Nowhere you worked with Youth who is an absolutely incredible producer. He just appears to have the Midas touch, and I love his work on for example Cast’s latest album Love Is The Call. What is it about Youth that allows him to really bring out the very best?

Well, first of all, I will say that having worked with Youth has been a real dream come true. I’ve always wanted to work with him and I know that Johnny was pretty keen to. He’s got just such a calming aura about him and at the same time he has this thing that really makes you want to impress him. I found myself just being fully inspired every day in the studio with him. I hope I get to work with him again. What a wonderful bloke he is and what an amazing body of work he’s got there. It was amazing to walk around the studio every day and look at all the record sleeves and all this incredible stuff. I love that guy and I think he’s truly one of the best. It’s an absolute honour that we got to do this album with him.

And you recorded the album at Youth’s Space Mountain in Spain.

It’s an amazing studio and it’s halfway up a mountain!. We hold up there for a couple of separate two weeks at a time. In itself, it was quite an interesting experiment because we haven’t spent much time together over the last decade, let alone us all staying in the same house halfway up a mountain. So I think it takes a pretty incredible type of human being in Youth to be able to hold us all together and keep everybody inspired and upbeat. And what a magical experience that was!

I wonder as well, when you describe all those circumstances like being halfway up a mountain and the time that’s passed and being in a different country, did all this shape the band’s music and creativity?

Yeah, definitely! I think that the place where you go and record and the people you’re with will always have an impact or influence, but it was unavoidable being in the world of Youth in his beautiful house up there where he’s got like an old school projector on the wall in the living room where we could watch old films in the evening, he’s got a record player going at dinner and there was a chef cooking us wonderful food! For even the most miserable of bands it would’ve been pretty hard not to feel inspired! (Laughs!) There were many moments of immense joy so it was very welcome for us having come together after all this time to work with somebody as magical as he is. He’s a force of nature!

For this release you’ve partnered with V2 records (Home of Kaiser Chiefs, Moby, Mumford &Sons, Skunk Anansie, Ziggy Marley and so many other amazing artists). What was it that attracted you to V2 and what is it about them that creates such incredible partnerships?

They’re just a bunch of great people. I think we met a couple of them when they came to our show last year and we got on well with them. They’ve stuck around for us, do you know what I mean? I think they initially wanted to do something with us maybe a year ago or maybe even longer. They’ve been patient and they’ve let us do our thing and we are really excited to be working with them and working alongside all those wonderful acts that you’ve just mentioned.

Let’s talk about Razorlight in a live setting because this month we see the band embarking on the Underplay Tour, where are you are playing some incredible venues across 6 dates, and you also have a 7th show at the Brixton Academy on the 21st of November. How much you looking forward to getting out there and playing the new music?

I think we’re really excited! We start rehearsing in a few days specifically for this tour where we’re playing just the new album. It’s interesting the shows that you’ve just mentioned because we’ve got 6 that are all the new album and then the 7th one at Brixton Academy is the first album. So we’ve got this odd couple of weeks of rehearsing just one album which will be interesting because it’s not something we’ve done before. And it will also be really interesting to go out and play these tiny venues. I don’t think any of us, certainly not as a band, have played a gig of this size probably since way before we all formed as a band. So it’s going to be really, really interesting to get out and be squished in. The audience is going to be getting very hot I think!

I think it’s going to be an amazing experience for the fans because to get to see yourselves in such an intimate venues is incredibly rare but I think another wonderful thing is that you’re going to be undertaking some music store live performance and signings which is always something incredibly special for the fans. How important is it for you to connect with fans on such a personal way?

Oh yeah, I think it’s massively important! It’s not something that everybody in the band always necessarily wants to do because it’s not always the most naturally comfortable thing to do but I think it’s incredibly important and it’s really special to get to say hello and chat to people that may have been there from the beginning or may have come on board more recently, but anybody who is there supporting you or listening to your music, they are everything to a band! That’s the whole point in it, isn’t it? You know, the connection between the band and the audience. So I think going out and getting a chance to chat to everybody and sign some records and stuff is gonna be a really special little tour. It’s only a short run but it’s going to be really special, a real one off for us, for sure!

As our conversation draws to a close, we reflect on one incredible album Planet Nowhere really is. It’s a collection of hugely uplifting tracks that represent the strongest of songwriting. This is Razorlight at their very best. To find out more, head over to www.razorlightofficial.com and in the meantime check out the video to the lead single Scared Of Nothing below.