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After a three year absence, Andy is ready to return to music with his new band Luna Seeds. So what took him so long? It was a simple case of needing a rest and a change of scene, as he explains.

"I went travelling for a year, which was amazing. For the last ten years of my life, I knew everything that I was doing planned 18 months in advance and there was never any time for anything else around that schedule. So I went off to India, trekked through Nepal and the Himalayas, and then ended up in Goa for a few months.

Finding Carrie

During that process, Andy started taking on production roles, one of which led him to his new musical partner, Carrie Tree

"I produced Fink and we were listening to things that we thought were really hot. He played me some stuff by Carrie. Within the first eight bars, I thought 'this is the next voice I want to work with', and that’s the first time I’d thought that since I met Lou.

"I got in touch with her and asked if she wanted to work with me. Her response was that she’d love to but she lived in Australia. So I just thought that it wasn’t meant to be.

"Six months later, I had a birthday party and invited loads of people. One of them asked if they could bring their friend Carrie. I couldn’t believe it when I turned out to be the same Carrie!

"So she came along and did a gig in my kitchen. Right there and then, I said 'I want to be in a band with you', so that’s how it started."

Fresh beginnings

Starting again with Luna Seeds has been a learning curve for Andy. After all, Lamb were big headliners, so being back at square one has been a little scary.

"But I guess it’s like having a clear out of your attic. I do miss not having big sound systems or good sound checks, but there is something exciting about being on this side of it. It’s more raw and down to earth, which suits me."

A different approach

Inevitably, Luna Seeds are going to be compared to Lamb, but Andy is certain that that’s not a problem, as the differences between the two go down to a fundamental level.

"In Lamb, I was the young one and Lou was the older one – there was ten years between us. In Lunaseeds, I’m eight years older than Carrie. I’m the wise one now, whereas Lou was the wise one in Lamb.

"But it’s not just Carrie. I’m working with Nikolaj Bjerre, who was Lamb’s drummer, and an amazing double bass player called Lucy Shaw. So I knew which musicians I wanted to work with early on and I’m lucky enough to have enormous talent within the project.

"Without wanting to sound clichéd, the best music is channelled. So you can hear my input in Lamb and you can hear my input in Luna Seeds, but I can definitely hear the difference."

More than beats

That difference also comes from the songwriting. For the first time, Andy is doing more than just being in charge of the beats and that’s something that he’s finding exciting.

"I’m writing lyrics, which I never did with Lamb, so it’s a lot more personal for me. That is very daunting. There’s a certain pleasure in being anonymous, being just behind the beats. When you put in the lyrics, it’s more a case of exposing yourself.

"It’s interesting how that first song came out. I was quite depressed at the end of Lamb, wondering where this amazing family had gone, and I wrote this song called Tremors, that just poured out of me.

"It was the first time I actually realised I could do it and it took something so heartbreaking to inspire me to put pencil to paper. After that, it’s become a lot more natural."

Space-age folk

Andy’s new way of working goes right through to the name of the band. It may seem like a made-up word, but it’s actually a physics term for a process that seems just right for summing up the project.

"A Luna Seed is when atoms form and collide to create a new moon. Both Carrie and I are moon signs and influenced by the moon, and we liked this idea of being quite ethereal but, at the same time, down to earth.

"We wanted the project to have both – quite organic and folky, but also including the better bits of technology and space-age sounds as well. It just seemed to encompass both worlds."

Whether Luna Seeds can find the same post-Lamb success as Lou Rhodes remains to be seen, but right now, such things don’t matter - it’s just good to finally have both former members of that fantastic band back making music.

Luna Seeds play the Ruby Lounge on Wednesday 14 November. Tickets are £7