I absorbed loads of genres when I was growing up from hip hop, to grunge and I loved all music and didn't just casually listened to it, I really took an interest. My dad bought me my first guitar at 12 and I was really into early Lenny Kravitz and Led Zeppelin. So it's all started spewing out now.

TAC - What can we expect from the new album?

LJM – It's out on the 7th July. They'll be something there for everyone. I didn't set out to make an album, I just recorded 40 songs over about two years and took the best ones.

TAC - How does that translate to the live stage?

LJM - I've got a good MD on board. We incorporate a lot of electronics into the set but I want to keep as live as possible. There's this feeling that we don't want to to cheat. Some of the sounds are difficult to produce live so you don't want to lose that. I'd say that Muse's live show's incredible, so if I'd want to be like anyone for live performance, it'd be them.

TAC - Who would you say were your musical heroes?

LJM - Well like every kid, I'd say Michael Jackson growing up. I'd say Prince, but I wasn't deep into Prince when I was a little but my brother was a fanatical freaky fan and it spread on to me. I started think, “Funk music's alright”. I was really into early Redman and Keith Murray. I was really into the Foo Fighters when they first formed. That transition between Nirvana after Kurt Cobain died and Dave Grohl doing things on his own.

TAC - Tell me a joke.

LJM – Oh Man, I'm crap at jokes, so... A man into a bar. Ouch. You can shoot me now.

TAC - What three words would you use to describe yourself?
LJM - [Laughs] Bob Marley, Terence Trent Derby, Lenny Kravitz

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