’We don’t need other people to buy our records to make us feel like we’re doing the right thing’

debut single, Charly, sparked an underground revolution and set them on the way to international fame and fortune.

“I knew it was special when I made it,” Liam reflects. “I had a feeling.

“We’ve never been a band that needs other people to buy our records to make us feel like we’re doing the right thing. It’s about finding some kind of atmosphere and tension. We rebelled against any form of backing it up commercially.

“All we did was play Charly at the raves. Radio notification when this temperature is reached.

The Ember charges through its own coaster and can keep a drink at a set temperature for about an hour.

The only slight downside is the weight – at 340g it’s noticeably heavier than traditional mugs, which takes some getting used to!

You can get an Ember in black or white, it holds 295ml and can be cleaned in the washing up bowl just like a regular mug. stations wouldn’t play it. Eventually they had to. We didn’t go on Top of the Pops. We were anti that. And we kept it real, all the way through.”

Fame and controversy came in equal measure and Liam married All Saints singer Natalie Appleton in 2002 – but their careers have operated on parallel paths, with no pairing ever on the cards.

“We’ve never talked about it. The girls are doing their thing, we’re doing our thing,” says Liam.

“We support each other but we never talk about collaborating. It’s ■ No Tourist out now. Tour starts tonight at The SEC, Glasgow After Sgt Pepper, rock matured and expanded, and hitherto carefree herberts became studious purveyors of the heady concept album. These priceless soul-soaked East End mods, led by the songwriting brilliance of Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane, were never going to make the leap into the new with anything but originality, monster tunes and psychedelic weirdness. This reissue relives a momentous popgoes-adult triumph.