In case you somehow missed it, 2017 saw Steps return with one of the most successful reunions in pop history. After releasing comeback banger Scared of the Dark and Tears on the Dancefloor album (literally every song's a bop) earlier this year H, Faye, Claire, Lee and Lisa are ready to chuck out a re-release with their fancy Crying at the Disco Deluxe Edition.
So many discos. So much crying.
So, as the band prepare to celebrate their 20th anniversary on the pretty-much-completely-sold-out Party on the Dancefloor tour with Vengaboys (!) we thought we'd better get Faye Tozer on the blower for a catch-up.
Basically it involved talk of said tour, new single Dancing with a Broken Heart and...um...her definitive favourite shade of blue. Hashtag journalism.
HIYA FAYE. Firstly, congratulations on setting an example for all bands on how to do a reunion properly.
Oh my God, thank you so much. That’s an incredible thing to say. For us it was a fear when we first talked about it because we do see bands from our generation, in the '90s, trying to do stuff and I think it’s not necessarily received the way we’ve been received or it hasn’t had the momentum that our albums had.
It’s just been brilliant and I think it’s a lot to do with the team that we have around us and the new music. We're very lucky.
Did you ever anticipate it'd work out so bloody well?
We got together this year just to celebrate our 20th anniversary and we can’t believe that it turned into a massive celebration with a brand new album that’s done so well already and that we’re so, so proud of.
It’s absolutely crazy considering this is the third time we’ve reunited. We just can’t thank everybody enough for the support. It feels really right this time. We’re getting to have a life and to really enjoy the job and we’re getting to be more creative; having our say.
Let's face it, releasing new music was a bit of a risk. Were you nervous?
We felt nervous, I guess, to do something slightly different. It seemed a bit more grown up. We had some great producers come and do our album and cater it to the charts these days without taking away the essence of, you know, our sound from back in the '90s.
We needed to make sure that we still had our identity but had a place inside music – and I think we’ve managed to do that.
The Party on the Dancefloor tour's literally weeks away. How on God's green EARTH are you gonna decide which songs make the setlist and which...sniff...don't?
It’s been really, really difficult. We wanted to get the fans involved with the setlist because we wanted to ask 'what haven’t you heard from us?'
We’ve taken that into consideration and we’re literally going to try and cram in as many songs as we possibly can into the time that we’ve got on stage. There are going to be a few mash-ups, I think. A few things have had to go into medleys because literally you’d be there for a week.
All the old faves are in there though, right Faye?
We’ve tried our best to shoehorn everything in without taking away the quality of it as well.
We’ve got an incredible musical director. He’s been putting things together and breathing new life into old songs, so they’re going to sound a little bit different. We're putting things together that you wouldn’t expect to go together.
Amazing. Your last tour was a more intimate vibe - are you ready for the big arena shows again?
I think we all get really excited and nervous, but not anxious. We put our hearts and souls into making this happen and I think we want everything to go right on the night and to make sure our voices sound right. The anticipation of what people will think about it, you know; everyone’s going to tell you straight away on social media.
The buzz of doing a massive live show, it’s just incredible. There’s nothing that can compare to being on stage at one of our concerts; that physical feeling when the crowd cheers.
Right, Faye - let's play a little game based on some classic Steps song titles. Is there a particular Steps outfit you think's Better Best Forgotten?
I think probably when we were doing bright colours. I’ve got to say, I always owned my yellow.
But I was wearing almost a Pocahontas-type outfit when we did something in Hyde Park and met Prince Charles. I had two plaits, a little crop top, baggy trousers, and I think slippers. That probably wasn’t my best day.
Ah, the '90s. Now - Deeper Shade of Blue. What actually is your favourite shade of blue?
I’m more of a turquoise at the minute. That’s a blue-green really, isn’t it? I like something a bit brighter.
You can have turquoise. Finally, Scared of the Dark. What's your biggest fear in life, Faye? We're getting deep.
My phobia is definitely spiders and daddy longlegs. I scream like a girl when a daddy longlegs comes too close.
My biggest fear in life? That's a deep one. I think I’m quite lucky because if I put my mind to things I make them happen; I’m quite a determined person. I think my biggest fear is probably not being able to sing or go on stage again. I think it'd be horrible to give anything like this up.
Steps' new album Tears on the Dancefloor: Crying at the Disco Deluxe Edition is out on October 27th. Dancing with a Broken Heart is out now and it's brilliant.