Tom Chaplin Keane to make waves as solo artist

And in the case of Keane frontman-turned-solo star Tom Chaplin, that's certainly true.

Voted by readers of Q Magazine as being one of Britain's greatest bands, alongside The Beatles, Oasis and Radiohead, Chaplin helped the East Sussex pop-rock band sell more than 10 million records.

Famed for using synths instead of guitars, his band won two BRITS, an Ivor Novello, two Q Awards, a GQ Award, and more besides.

Yet Chaplin was hiding a dark secret from his fans during his years at the top. He was, to use his words, 'shovelling cocaine up his nostrils' as the band became one of Britain's most successful.

And his fight against chronic addiction and the manner in which he almost lost his family and band are chronicled in an excoriating debut album, The Wave.

Chaplin is on the road playing just eight shows to promote the record, including one at Birmingham's Glee Club on Sunday.

They will be his first dates in almost four years and will give fans a rare opportunity to get up close and personal with one of this country's finest singers.

Tom has assembled an incredible array of musicians, all multi-instrumentalists, able to switch what they play as the richly layered songs demand.

His band features MD, drummer and programmer Sebastian Sternberg; Rosie Langley on violin, synths and guitar; classically trained pianist and violinist Tobie Tripp; and Beau Holland on guitar, synths and piano.

They will be playing songs from The Wave, including the hugely evocative first single, Quicksand.

"I think it's a very candid record," he says. "It amplifies all of the feelings of anxiety, excitement and nervousness that I've felt. I feel really great about it. I've had really great feedback, not just about the few songs that are out there but also in terms of my personal story and how it shaped the record.

"The response has been very positive about that. I was anxious at the very beginning of being open about problems being met with cynicism. But people have been interested and understanding and it's resonated."

Chaplin has spent 15 years at the coalface with Keane and yet, without his bandmates in tow, he now feels liberated. He has embraced his solo career and it's given him a sense of artistic renewal.

"I do feel like a brand new artist. The reason for that is because I have a very different attitude to life. What people are getting is a whole new perspective. That makes me feel like a brand new artist.

"I feel that sense of appreciation for all the new things that are happening, like getting a slot on Jools Holland's TV show. Three or four albums in with Keane and maybe that didn't feel like a big deal, but as a solo artist it feels mind-blowing."

Chaplin is candid not only about his drug problems but also about Keane's abilities. He's the anti-rock star, a man who calmly assesses his band's true merits rather than offering braggadocio.

"None of us were virtuosos but we spent a long time figuring out a way of sounding good and I think we really achieved that. We created our own sound and were defined by certain things.

"But having stepped away from that, I've been given a blank canvas and I've been able to throw what I like musically at the songs. I have to stand and fall by songs.

"As much as I've enjoyed my time with Keane it's time to be out on my own."

To all intents and purposes, The Wave is a record of recovery. It's one that nails itself to the mast as part of Chaplin's battle against cocaine addiction.

"I'm aware of how devious and powerful that part of me can be, particularly if I give it any oxygen. I'm very conscious of just keeping on top of it. I know some people think there's a genetic link to addiction and maybe there's some truth in that. But for me, the thing that is keeping me well is to get to the root cause.

"I've been through a lot of psychotherapy and I've opened up to other people.

"Cocaine was a huge part of my life. At times, it was my life. It was a living hell. I was exhausted by it. On one hand, a lot of addicts talk about drinking themselves sober. I understand that. The most important thing was suddenly having clarity about what I was losing.

"I had a moment of clarity. I knew that I was going to die. I would have lost everything. My marriage would have been over and I wouldn't have had a relationship with my daughter. I suddenly realised how awful and painful it would be. It felt like an epiphany."

And so he got straight. Not that that's ever easy. "I had great stability in my life, through my wife and daughter and being part of a successful band. But the power of an addiction is such that despite having all of those things, they're not necessarily powerful enough to beat an addiction."

Away from music, Chaplin loves football and cricket. He plays football twice a week, featuring in his local six-a-side team. "I just adore it. It's about the closest thing I can get to taking drugs without taking them. It's an otherworldly experience." And he's not bad. "I'm reasonably handy, I mill around up front. Occasionally if I'm feeling energetic, I take on a midfield role."

He's also a huge cricket fan and counts ex-England stars like Michael Vaughan, Ian Botham and ex-Warwickshire-and-England pace duo Gladstone Small and Bob Willis among his mates.

"If you're a true cricket fan, the nuance and subtlety of Test cricket is impossible to match.

The attritional nature makes me tick. I could watch it for five days. I just hope it survives around the world and people getting into cricket through 20-20 can come to appreciate the subtlety of the longer form. These are exciting times."

Exciting times for cricket and, more particularly, exciting times for Chaplin.

By Andy Richardson