The Wanted interview: 'We were worried our album would flop'

It's fair to say The Wanted have had a pretty successful 2011. The pop five-piece nabbed another number one single in the summer with 'Glad You Came', while their second studio album Battleground gave them a second top five album.

As if that wasn't enough, the lads joined teen sensation Justin Bieber for part of his South American tour and have started to make preparations for a Stateside takeover.

Digital Spy caught up with band member Jay McGuiness to ask about the group's highlight's over the last 12 months, as well as finding out what's in store for 2012.

Congratulations on the success of Battleground; were you pleased with its chart performance?
"Yeah, we were really worried that it wouldn't go into the Top 10, let alone the top five, because quite a few fellow pop people haven't done as well as they'd hoped. When we nipped in at number five and we were like, 'Oh thank God for that!' It was a bit of a relief and then a celebration afterwards."

Was it especially rewarding given that you'd written a lot of the album yourselves?
"We always want that to happen and we tried on the first album, but we just simply weren't strong enough songwriters. Over the past two years we've learnt so much and when you're with a record label and able to work with the greatest songwriters ever, it's wicked. It was nice we were able to do that, because I think last year we didn't have the balls."

You've previously hinted that there is a deluxe version of Battleground in the pipeline - what can we expect from that?
"Yeah, we think there will be. You know when you just have a load of good songs and then they're just ready in time and you don't want to waste them? We don't really want to use them for another album, because they were written for this one. We were trying to figure a way around it - like doing another mini release - and then the record label put to us an idea, but there's still talk around that. We're conscious that we don't rip off people because they'll just get fed up and stop listening to us."

Would you ever consider releasing the stuff as a separate EP?
"Yeah, we've had a lot of discussions about that too, but it's all still up in the air. This extended album proposal is looking quite strong when we look at the list of what we've got so far. We might test the ideas with a fan response as they're the ones who have to like it."



Example has revealed that he has a song for you. Have you recorded anything with him yet?
"Yeah, we've been talking with him for ages. He sent a few before that didn't quite make it, but we've got one from him now that we absolutely love. Tom has it on his iPod and it's now become his most played song on there! We're hopefully going to record the track this week. It's actually similar in some ways to 'Glad You Came'. It won't be out before Christmas because people don't want to be raving when it's p*ssing with snow."

How are you feeling about the release of your new single 'Warzone'?
"I think our sound changes quite a lot and 'Warzone' is completely different from 'Glad You Came', but people seem to be liking it. We're really excited about it because Nathan and Max wrote it, which genuinely steps it up a notch. We're kacking ourselves a bit, but the reaction has been amazing."

What has been your highlight of 2011?
"I really enjoyed going over to Brazil to support Justin Bieber's tour. The kids over the there that are fans of his are literally insane. I can't put into words how excited they were. I also really liked filming the video for 'Glad You Came'. It was so good and I'm glad it came across in the video just how much fun we did have. When we were listening to treatments for the video we were like, 'They're all little bit samey and have already been done. Can we just go to Ibiza?!' It was just so cool."

Who's been your favourite artist of 2011?
"I love Ed Sheeran, but who doesn't right now - so that isn't really noteworthy. He's like a mini Newton Faulkner and I'm a huge Newton fan. I also like Katy B. Last year I hated anything to do with dubstep. Tom loved it and it used to really p*ss me off when he'd play the music dead loud because we lived in a grotty house. But over time your ears open up to new music and so I bought Katy B's album and it's genuinely on repeat!"

A bit of that dubstep has filtered through on to The Wanted's latest album too...
"Yeah, definitely. People always ask us whether we're influenced by stuff in the charts and it's just a lie to say no. As much as you can lock yourself away, your ear still changes with the time."

What are your hopes for 2012?
"I hope our arena tour gets good reviews. As much as it's about what the fans love and we always get a great reaction from them, but when some critic says, 'That was a great vocal and a great pop show and worth the money', I always feel good reading that. Our last shows got such a good reaction and so I hope this one lives up to what a lot of people are hoping it will be."

The Wanted's latest album Battleground is available to buy now, while their single 'Warzone' will be officially released on December 25.

Watch the music video for The Wanted's 'Warzone' below: