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Tina Lee gets a few words with Jay Kay of Jamiroquai ahead of his big gig at dragon-i.

We heard it was difficult to convince you to play at a club – what changed your mind in the end?

It’s been a while since we played a club date – nowadays it’s usually arenas and large theatres. Clubbing, disco and dance music have always been a huge influence on the band though, so it’s a natural environment for us. Sometimes when we’re in the middle of a tour with a big production [playing clubs is] just not possible. I have played a couple of smaller venues back home over the past few years for special events though and loved the intimate vibe – so I’m up for it!

I’m working on a new album, which will be my first not to be released through Sony, but I don’t consider it to be a comeback as I’ve not really been away! It does feel like the start of a new chapter though, which feels great. It’s my first studio album since 2005, but there was the Greatest Hits, which I had to do some promotion for. I think three years is a healthy gap between records.

Can you explain to fans why there was a sudden halt to your music career?

There hasn’t been a sudden halt:Dynamitecame out in 2005. I released the Hits compilation in 2006, and I was touring and promoting around those. That cycle can be exhausting so I did take some time out to have a life but only about a year, after which I began work on the forthcoming album. It’s amazing to me that when you don't release anything for a couple of years people think you’ve disappeared – quality takes time and being constantly in everyone’s face is boring anyway.

What’s changed in your music and what sort of sound and show should guests expect for the night?

We’ve got a much harder, rocky edge to our sound of late but still funky. There are programmed beats and live instruments as well and we play with the arrangements on some of the older songs to keep things fresh too. It’ll sound good – don't worry about that!

Where is the fuzzy hat? You know everyone is going to want to hear you sing Virtual Insanity – will you let them have it?

Ha ha, that would be telling! I still play it sometimes but we do vary the set. There’ll definitely be some big classic Jamiroquai tunes in the set, but I don’t want to ruin any of the surprises. I think, I hope, the fans will go home happy. As for hats, I still wear them and have several –but not sure about the ‘fuzzy’ one!