“We had to. We had to come this time,” says Quaresma.
And while it may look like they have been taking a break, the group say they have been constantly working to evolve their sound and act.
“When it comes to things like our live performances, I feel like we’ve had enough experience to be like: ‘That didn’t work guys’,” Douglas says.
“Let’s change, let’s pivot, let’s tweak that…
“We love to improve, we love constructive criticism, we love developing, like we’ve been developing our whole lives.”
It is this “hunger” and “drive” they plan to bring into their new era and upcoming shows, including when they take to the stage at BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend when it heads to Sunderland next month.
“I love how Big Weekend is always in a place that you wouldn’t expect,” Quaresma says.
“I feel like that’s good. Let’s bring people to the places that don’t get any love.”
She says the group are excited as she feels “Northerners get down, for sure”.