THE Milltown Brothers are back in the studio working on their third album and looking to erase the painful memories of their fall from grace.

Featuring the original line-up of Matthew and Simon Nelson, James Fraser, Barney Williams and Nian Brindle the five-piece -- who enjoyed a string of hit singles in the early Nineties -- only found themselves working together again by chance earlier.

After joining the bill for a showcase of local bands at the Burnley Mechanics back in February, they re-discovered the buzz for what they had started over a decade before.

Matthew said: "We must be the most unplanned group ever. Everything that happens with us seems to be more by accident rather than design. When I moved back here, I'd decided I wasn't going to do the band thing any more but it seems like you can sign out of the Milltown Brothers but never leave."

So despite a new career in film and having a young family to think about, after the Mechanics gig Matthew started writing new material with the band almost immediately.

Recording two tracks with John Pennington -- who worked on their early material -- in Manchester, doors were quickly opened with a number of parties interested in producing and putting out the finished album.

So without signing a record deal yet, the lads have been financed to record twelve tracks, which will be done in batches over the summer and autumn.

And with the plan to release and tour the new album early next year, they also hope to licence it in Holland, Japan and America.

Of the new material Matthew said: "The album will be all new tracks but they're more in line with the original Slinky writing.

"The songs are faster, poppier, lighter again but with a bit of an edge."

He continued: "We're not saying it's definitely going to be a massive chart album, we just want to write an album that we can be proud and not leave things with the legacy of Valve (their last album). We don't feel we have anything to prove but when I look back now, I can see we weren't a good band around that time and now we have a chance to redress the balance."

Despite being out of the limelight for so long they've also been encouraged by the popularity of their website.

Set up by long time fan Laurence Hoare, his commitment to creating an interesting site when little or nothing was happening within the group now sees it attracting a massive 25,000 hits a year.

And with the number of hits still on the increase, the band are putting together a limited edition album, of the best songs written since the Milltown Brothers split in 1994, which will be available on the site in about six weeks.

Matthew said: "We were surprised just how many people look at it and it's good that the songs written since Valve, won't be wasted.

"We'll probably press either 500 or 1000 and see what the interest is."