THE arrival of a new millennium saw a bunch of lads from Eastbourne become one of the hottest bands in the country.

A cover version of Dancing in the Moonlight spent a total of 45 weeks in the charts and was a hit around the world and their debut album Onka’s Big Moka sold over two million copies.

But success faded almost as quickly as it had come. The critics turned against the band’s second album Magic Hotel and Toploader disappeared off the radar.

Now the band are back, older, wiser and enjoying making music more than ever.

“I think we now appreciate things so much more,” said lead singer Joe Washbourne. “We were all very naive at the time of the first album.

“We were really just a bunch of young lads and everything sort of happened around us. It was a whirlwind but we really didn’t take it all in.”

Toploader come to Burnley Mechanics next month with a new album to their name and a renewed vigour.

“We all saw ourselves as being in it for the long term,” said Joe. “But first time round it just didn’t but all that early success was too much and we couldn’t really handle it. We were going all over the place and never stopped. It wasn’t what we had signed up for.

“But that spark of being a band never went away and when we got together again it just felt right.”

The band released a third album, Only Human, in 2011 and have been working on new material including their most recent single This Is The Night which was championed by Radio 2.

“When we started playing live again we really didn’t expect there to be anyone there,” said Joe. “But our fans have stuck with us and it’s been really good.”

At first the re-energnised band were reluctant to play their biggest hit.

“When we got back together we were all pretty determined not to play Dancing in the Moonlight,” said Joe. “But it soon became obvious that, like it or not, that song is part of who we are. I think half the audience must have come to hear that song and we also gradually mellowed. Now we play it regularly and I think we have all grown to like it again. It is a really good song and it sorted of developed a life of its own.”

Joe won the band a whole new set of fans after appearing on the reality show Pop Star to Opera Star.

“It was good fun,” he said. “I got a lot of stick initially from other members of the band but it helped raise our profile and it was based on singing. I wouldn’t do any other of these reality shows.”

  • Toploader, Burnley Mechanics, Saturday, March 22. Details from 01282 664400.