Carpets set for return

CLINT BOON . . . preparations are under way for a tour next year

YOU heard it here first ­- Oldham legends the Inspiral Carpets have begun focusing on new material, and an album and tour is likely to follow in 2017.

The Carpets ­- Steve Holt, Clint Boon, Graham Lambert, Martyn Walsh and Craig Gill - always stated their intention to take 2016 off.

After the successful release of the self-titled album towards the end of 2014, numerous gigs last year and then a full UK tour with Shed 7 last December, all five members of the stellar 1990s Madchester fore-runners were happy to take a step back for a while.

However, it appears the band may be back rather sooner than some fans may have expected.

Keys man Boon told the Chronicle: "We don't overdo the live element of the band these days because we know that if we do too much the demand will start to die off and we'll end up playing to 150 people a night.

"We're all very keen to just go out and gig at the right time, so we did the Shed 7 tour at the end of last year, and we won't be doing any this year.

"We are starting to write again, though. The emails with new song ideas have started flying around so it's only a matter of time.

"Maybe by the end of the year we'll start recording an album, and I'm guessing by the spring or summer of next year we'll be looking at going out again.

"We are very much still a band, there's no demise of the Inspiral Carpets and I don't know whether there ever will be.

"We don't really have a long-term plan. We're still mates and we're still looking forward to doing something as and when.

"As individuals, we all love the fact that we've got other things going on outside the band. It's just a nice position that we're all in at the moment."

A year out from the Inspiral Carpets certainly doesn't mean Boon will be scratching around for something to do.

He continues to be a seven-days-a-week man, working as a DJ on BBC Radio Manchester and Radio X, as well as regular club dates at South in Manchester (where he has wowed crowds for 15 years) and the Black Dog Ballroom (Fizz Face Fridays, between 5pm and 9pm every week).

Clint also co-hosts Mrs Boon's Tea Parties with wife Charlie (see below), but one project he is particularly keen to resume in the next month or two is his popular 'Storytime with Boon' podcasts.

Lasting approximately 30-40 minutes and released - through iTunes - with help from Distorted Productions, Boon has offered up 18 episodes so far, with more now in the pipeline following a short break.

The Carpets star added: "I've loved it because it's like writing that book that I've been meaning to write for years.

"I've had some great guests on, like fellow Oldhamer Professor Brian Cox, opera singer Alfie Boe, Fran Healy from Travis, Bonehead from Oasis and Rick Witter from Shed 7.

"To be honest the podcasts might be the cement for a book, but even if I drop dead tomorrow they've got lots of material already.

"The reaction has been just great. I think so far we're up to about 170,000 downloads - it's a lot of people that."

*Listen to Simon Smedley's exclusive audio interview with Clint Boon by logging on to our Chronicle man's Twitter page ­- @Smedders1966