Also thusly employed are the mad eyed reed-blower Mars Williams, the ever breakfasting Billy Ficca and producer Hugh Padgham, the other group members having already metal-birded their way back Stateside.

We retire to said cushy billet for a pheasant sandwich, a tankard or two of high class claret and a spot of banter.

A philosophical starter why are you here?

Chris: “Working here rather than in the States is actually cheaper in terms of pound against dollar and we tried every studio in New York without finding the right one."

It reeks a bit of cow dung and getting it together in the-country though, a trifle odd perhaps for an urban inclined band such as the Waitresses?

“Five of the Waitresses originate from the mid-West so we have actually seen trees before. It's good to record in this type of environment, you're not on edge the whole time, but I can't understand how people can go away and write in isolation – there has to be something going on to give you a sharpness. Plus Hugh likes to work here."

How come Hugh is producing when you basically did the first album yourself?

“Hugh's sandwiched us in between Hall And Oates and the Police, but I've always been a fan of XTC and I loved the stuff that Hugh did with them, the way their experimental approach was incorporated into the overall sound."

So how's the recording been?

"Terrible! We want this record to be the best the bets thing we’ve ever done. We’re taking more care and rejecting a lot of takes. We've not got that 'that's okay, blemishes and all' attitude that we've had in the past. Musically the songs have become much harder and more aggressive."

The lyrics have always been the captivating thread.

"There's always been this character which exists in addition to the actual members of the band. On the first LP each song found her in a difficult position, but by the end she'd got to the point of having dealt with the problem and was able to stand on her own feet.

"I'm trying to express the unspoken feelings of people, not grandly or pretentiously but in relation to everyday life and the pressures that affect an individual. I've been thinking recently that the character is like the person you get in every Spielberg movie. A person that is forced into a particular situation by the external pressures acting on their life, be it a shark or whatever, and then have to deal with it.

"Living a life is hard. In the States there's this thing of the 'American Dream'. If you step outside a rigid path, move to left or right, it's considered economically dangerous. There is a lot of pressure on people to conform. On the new album the character is taken a step further, older and more independent and becoming adventurous.”

Currently causing a few grunts and grimaces to the otherwise optimistic Butler is the decision by Island to release a single 'Christmas Wrapping', a happy yuletide tale included on Ze's 'A Christmas Record' of last year.

Following this move Polydor (to whom the Waitresses are signed) have nixed the issue of an EP containing the Butler penned theme from an US tube frolic called Square Pegs plus three other "heavier" cuts. He observes with resignation:

"It's sad that the more lightweight material gets most exposure. I mean, K-tel are doing a compilation and they want 'I Know What Boys Like' on it. I really wish we could kill that song, but we did it and there you go.”