Inside Kasabian’s studio: “We never thought we’d see success again”

In a black studio hidden behind a gated house in rural Leicestershire, Serge Pizzorno is preparing Kasabian’s next chapter. The stark cube sits among farmland and fish ponds, guarded by a giant gorilla sculpture and packed with vintage synthesizers, guitars and eccentric touches.

The Kasabian frontman has built the studio so he can work whenever inspiration arrives. Inside, snacks and phones are banned. He works for four or five hours a day, sometimes with a David Lynch film playing in the background, and has even abandoned the lunch break.

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A little bit of hunger is good for you. Keeps you going.

“A little bit of hunger is good for you,” Pizzorno says. “Keeps you going.” The routine marks a sharp change from Kasabian’s early years, when he says he lived the “French poet life,” staying awake for three days in search of inspiration. For the past three albums, he says, he has followed a structured life and is enjoying it.

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No distractions, four or five hours a day. I like to work fast. I even cut out the lunch break.

The BBC visited 10 days before the release of Act III, the band’s ninth album. Pizzorno played “Soulmate,” an affectionate tribute to his wife, Amy, driven by a showy guitar riff. He also previewed “Say You (Closer),” a song about togetherness built around three-part harmonies.

The track comes closer than any previous Kasabian song to the Eagles, he says, and reproducing that sound onstage makes him nervous. The studio, nicknamed “The Sergery,” also contains a silent gong, four Kasabian bobbleheads rescued from the “Call” video, and a basketball court for days when inspiration fails to appear.

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That can be great. It adds to the atmosphere of a record. But for the last three albums, I’ve pretty much led a structured life, and I’m really digging it.