Taking it from the top...

Because I’m purposefully avoiding the elephant, the gigantic lumbering mammal from the salad days of this century, that comes thundering into the room every time a member of Toploader answers a journalist’s questions.

Dancing in the Moonlight.

This chirpy, upbeat number was the aspirational soundtrack of 2000, the song we were all playing in our lofts which were decorated with fairy lights while we hosted dinner parties bish, bash, bosh, Jamie Oliver style.

But here’s an illusion shattering fact – the song only reached number 7 in the UK charts. And it was a cover.

And Joe brings it up first!

He tells me: “The buzz of performing live is still there for us. We still get a bit nervous, but that’s really important no matter what size place you’re performing in.

“Our crowds have been really supportive. They are a bit older now, they were the same age as us when the first album came out.

“Dancing in the Moonlight has stuck around and there’s a younger generation that has discovered it now.”

Then, after a pause, he tells me: “You didn’t actually ask me about Dancing in the Moonlight before I mentioned it, which is lovely. I still get the same kick out of hearing it that I did first time around.

“But the song was part of the reason why we split up, it was a beast of a song and it wouldn’t go away – we were thinking ‘we need to kill it’.

“Now we seem to have realised that it’s such a timeless classic, people want to hear that song and we’ve finally realised what it’s meant for people.”

But it has taken time away from the band to arrive at that place, Joe said.

Toploader formed in 1997 and racked up more than two million album sales and six top 20 hits before splitting up in 2003 and reforming six years later. The band now has four of its six original members.

Joe spent time away from the band living in Los Angeles where he eschewed the celebrity lifestyle.

“I had a few meetings and ending up staying there for two years. I went to Topanga Canyon which is a very creative kind of place, not like the centre of LA.

“It’s a very hippy kind of place, I wrote music and grew my hair and lived a bit like a red neck.

“I still get teary-eyed thinking about it now, I’m very lucky I was able to do it.”

Hollywood came calling while Joe was stateside and he wrote the score for movie The Skeleton Key, starring Kate Hudson.

As we move on to discuss the change in Toploader’s sound, Joe’s phone rings.

“That’s my mum calling,” he tells me.

“She’s the only person who phones my house and uses the landline,” he says.

We both agree that landlines exist to appease mothers as we get back on track and Joe tells me how the band’s sound has evolved.

“Onka’s Big Moka was a positive little record that was quite clearly written by a bunch of kids in their early 20s.

“Our album Only Human is darker. We had the chance to go off and do what we wanted to do.

“The way we work now is that we’re always trying out new stuff.”

This approach has still yielded commercial success –Toploader’s newest single This is the Night was A-listed on Radio 2, receiving regular plays on all shows.

The band will be spending more time in the studio later this year.

Joe said: “It would be nice to think we could get an EP together before the end of the year.

“This is the Night was a single written for a new album and we thought it was such an exciting track, we just wanted to get it out there and release it.”

But ahead of more recording for Toploader is this summer’s festival circuit – this year taking in the Forever Sun Festival in Dorchester.

Joe said: “During July we’re going to festivals every weekend. It’s a great time of year for us.

“We’ve spent a lot of time in the West Country and we’re really looking forward to doing Forever Sun.

“It’s only the second year and they’ve got some really great artists.

“We’re looking forward to hearing the Happy Mondays, they’ve got some great records.

“We’re hoping for some good weather, but in this country it is always good to be prepared and bring your welly boots.”