Roger Daltrey says The Who’s new album is their best since ‘Quadrophenia’.
Although the iconic rock group’s frontman was originally skeptical about their first collection since 2006’s ‘Endless Wire’, after hearing it he thinks it’s their strongest record in 46 years.
Speaking during a Q&A at pop-up shop The Who @ 52, the NME quoted him as saying: "When I first heard the songs I was very skeptical as I didn’t think I could do it
"I thought [Pete Townshend] had written a really great solo album and I said to him, ‘Pete, what do you need to do this for? Release it as a solo album, it’s great.’ But he said he wanted it to be a Who album.
"So I took the songs away and I listened to them, and listened to them some more, and I had some ideas. [Pete] let me have a bit of freedom with changing a few things, changing the tenses of songs and other little things.
"And he gave me complete melodic freedom. And I gotta tell you that after being very skeptical I’m now incredibly optimistic. I think we’ve made our best album since ‘Quadrophenia.’ "
The band’s iconic sixth record – a double album – was released in 1973 featuring tracks like ‘The Real Me’, ‘Sea and Sand’, and ‘Drowned’, and the rock opera was given a big screen adaptation of the same name six years later.
Daltrey previously revealed that he visualises himself panting a picture when he is "interpreting" Townshend’s lyrics and admitted it can take a long time because it has to "come from [his] heart".
He explained: "For me, interpreting the songs is challenging, like painting a portrait of an incredibly interesting looking person.
"I have to do a lot of sketches before I get it right and when I get it right, I know it in my head. One of my problems is that I can’t read lyrics and sing them. They have to come from my heart."
Roger Daltrey: The Who’s next album is best since Quadrophenia
