Interview: Nearly three decades for Barenaked Ladies

That’s because the Canadian popsters reckon it’s the first country that ever got their music outside their native land.

And they were so gobsmacked at the reaction they got here they had to stop the show.

“I was a massive Proclaimers fan, and got our demo tape onto the stage one time that they played Canada,” recalls singer Ed Robertson.

“That got into the hands of Kenny McDonald, their manager at the time, and he got it played on the radio in Scotland a bit.

"So we had loyal fans in Glasgow before anywhere else outside of Canada.

“My favourite audiences in the world are in Glasgow - it’s been my favourite since we played King Tut’s in the early 90s, and then working our way up to the Barrowland and doing T In The Park.”

This time around the band are headlining the O2 ABC on Thursday, promoting their eleventh album, Silverball.

"It will have to go some to top that that early appearance at Tut’s all those years ago, an occasion that Ed still recalls with relish.

“Maybe a third of the way into the set everyone started singing along,” explains Ed.

“I actually thought ‘what’s going on here?’

"We were expecting to play to 25 people and Tut’s was sold out - we stopped in the middle of the first verse because it was so bewildering to hear our songs being sung by a roomful of Scots.”

A lot has happened in the years since that show.

The group’s tongue in cheek humour and way with melodies saw their popularity explode throughout the 90s, aided by inescapable hit singles like One Week and Pinch Me, and they played to massive crowds.

The darker side of their career saw them become increasingly burned out, and founder member Steven Page departed under a cloud in 2009 (he recently reappeared to sue the band over unpaid royalties relating to their theme for The Big Bang Theory).

Today, however, Ed is in a content mood.

The Barenaked Ladies always had a love them or hate them element to their music, but with a dedicated fan base solidly supporting them Ed doesn’t feel the group have to chase anything anymore.

“I think it would be futile anyway for 45-year-old Canadian dudes to be chasing a hit, but being more relaxed really puts you in a headspace that allows you to be grateful for the hits that you’ve had,” he explains.

“I sat down and said ’all the things that people chase have already happened to us’ so let’s not even pursue that.

"Let’s take it off the radar entirely and make a record because making records is really fun and have great shows because that’s rewarding in itself.

“If you’re requiring external validation, then you become desperate.

"Since we focused on entertaining ourselves then everything has become 10 times more rewarding.”

That attitude can be heard on Silverball, another serving of witty pop-rock.

The foursome rattled through the recording quickly this time, not wanting to linger too much, but Ed reckons it also reflects how the band are able to communicate and understand each other better these days.

“I think bands are an intense, intimate relationship and I wouldn’t be surprised if the break-up rate was the same as divorces,” he says, dryly.

“It’s something you embark on because it’s joyous and fun, and then when you get down to the nitty gritty of it all, then you have to start arguing through things and fighting for your point of view.

"The key to this band’s success has always been the ability to communicate, and it’s like a four way marriage now - you’ve got to be sensitive to how everyone’s feeling and communicate what you need.”

The album takes its title from Ed’s fascination with pinball, and he’s hoping to fit in a few games while over here…

“I just went to the Cleveland pinball show and lost one game in ten hours of playing,” he says.

“So I’m ready to take on all comers and I’m looking forward to the UK, because there’s some great arcades there.

"There were some great old machines in the HMV on Sauchiehall Street, so I’ll be soliciting some Tweets for new places to go…”

Barenaked Ladies, O2 ABC, Thursday, £28, 7pm