Manics: "Great to get back to the three of us and making a right old racket," says Nicky Wire

Designed for disaster, the rejuvenated Manic Street Preachers have stripped away the restrictions and attitudes of the past and are embracing their big beautiful choruses. As Nicky says: "We treated it like it could be our last album."

The queue starting a full six hours before the band were to take to the stage but that wait was of no concern to the Manics fans standing and sitting outside our central London studio. A band whose relationship with its fans is much like a marriage with good days and bad days.

These are the good days, a new album Send Away The Tigers, their eighth, is upon us and with it, James, Nicky and Sean are proudly showing off in their best suit. "We've surpressed the big choruses for seven or eight years," says Nicky Wire "but this time round we've said 'right, James, let it rip.'"

And, mixing the old with the brand new, The Manic Street Preachers certainly let it rip in their first AOL Session, opening with You Love Us. Fans at the front are delighted, punching the air in all the right places while Nicky grins and is thoroughly enjoying himself.

Very much not a love song, I'm Just A Patsy, from Send Away The Tigers, is next with its punchy chorus doing the business as dancing and happy grins break out all round. The magical Motorcycle Emptiness, sounding as fresh as on release, is next as the band punch through the tracks and really build up a head of steam. Sean whirring behind the kit, Nicky doing the splits, falling to his knees and resplendent in full kohl eyeliner as James spins like a top. Any thoughts that this is a band in decline can be put to rest.

First single from the new album, Your Love Alone Is Not Enough, is next with its stark look at the questions surrounding suicide, followed by From Despair To Where also from Tigers.

The stunning signal of intent for the new album, Underdogs, really whips everyone in the room up and so to bring us down gently, James takes the solo spotlight with an acoustic guitar to play a cover of You Can't Wrap Your Arms Around A Memory by Johnny Thunders.

With that, it's all over but with promises of super-long live sets, make-up galore and much more, it's shaping up to be a beautiful Indian Summer for the Manic Street Preachers.

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