Nada Surf, who’ve been consistently gracing record players and headphones since 1992, have built a career on delivering heartfelt alternative rock with a mix of sincerity and polish. As they release their tenth studio record Moon Mirror, lead singer and guitarist Matthew Caws opens up about recording in legendary studios, meeting Noel Gallagher and why he still can’t shake the thrill of getting it right the first time.

“It’s not that deep of a thought”, Caws says, somewhat misleadingly, when explaining the title of their latest opus over a video call from his Cambridge home.

“It's the only object that everybody can see. We've all seen clouds, but different clouds. We've all seen trees, but different trees. We've all seen humans, but different humans. I know we can't see each other in it. But what if what if we could, you know, and we've all had similar thoughts looking at it, you know, because it's, it's an object that you contemplate, maybe you've thought about your life and had questions about your life. There’s this sense of communal searching.”

Caws had plenty of time to form such pontifications, with the songwriter stating that the band benefitted from taking their time with the album.

“You know, we had been ready to make a record just as lockdown started, and we thought, let’s just let things happen when they’re ready. We didn’t want to make a pandemic record,” he shares.

“We got together in the summer of 2020 and wrote a lot. But then, by the time we got back together again, we were a little sick of the first batch. And I think having a lot of time made it so that we could really separate the wheat from the chaff. Time is really good for making music because, you know, you’ll play something and think it’s pretty good, but you might not be sure. And then, a month or two later, you listen back, and it’s so clear whether it’s good or not.”

“It’s a little more direct,” he continues, discussing how Moon Mirror’s sound differs from the outfit’s already extensive catalogue. “On songs like ‘Floater’, there are parts that are quite stark, which I really enjoy. And then the kitchen sink shows up in the outro. It’s not like there’s a real aesthetic choice made at the beginning. But we just continue to try and represent excitement as well as we can, you know, and try to preserve the feeling of getting it right the first time at band practice, which I still think is one of the best things about being in a band.

“It doesn’t matter if you play out a lot or to a few people or to a lot of people. I still think that the first time you get it right together in the practice room is the greatest high. For me, it’s a big thrill. And, you know, every time we make a record, we try and track that—I mean, like, pay attention to that. What did it feel like the first time we played it?

Moon Mirror was recorded at the iconic Rockfield Studios in Wales, a place that Caws and his bandmates have grown fond of over the years.

“It’s the second record we’ve made there. It’s a great place,” he says. “It happens to be where the first three Echo and the Bunnymen records were made. I’m a really big fan of theirs. The Flamin’ Groovies too.

“There's a wonderful owner, Kingsley Ward, who comes around and sits and tells stories. It’s fun to look in the tape library. We didn’t put it on any of the tapes, but it’s just neat to see bands that you love and song titles you don’t recognize and wonder what could have been on those treasures.”

Did Caws find himself being intimidated by the fact that some of the most important records of all time - including Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody - were recorded there?

“It mostly translates into excitement and kind of psychs you up and maybe makes you feel braver or care a little more.”

Rockfield is also synonymous with Oasis’ hi-jinx in the ‘90s, having been the studio where the Britpop frontrunners recorded (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?. Caws, so it happens, has a bit of brief history with the Gallagher brothers.

“Well, I mean, more than anything, it’s just nice to see an example of siblings patching it up, you know?” he says, referencing their recent reunion.

“I interviewed Noel just before (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? came out. I was working for a magazine called Guitar World, and we met for tea in a hotel lobby. I didn’t know much about them, but I read that they were pretty boastful and obnoxious in the press. I was expecting to meet this arrogant person, but in fact, he was really sweet and chill and down to earth and just a funny, regular dude.

“However, when I turned on the tape recorder, he sort of put on this other persona. He did say that if they knew there was a journalist in the bar, he and Liam would start fighting just because it made good press. But, you know, maybe then that became real because it got written about so much—I don’t know. But I wish every family who are fractured, I wish them reconciliation. So it’s nice to see.”

Caws - originally hailing from New York City - has a clear affinity for this part of the world, now residing in the collegiate surrounds of Cambridge in England. He also has fond touring memories across the Irish Sea, where Nada Surf are set to return this month.

“We had been putting records out for something like 12 years. It took us a while to get to Dublin,” he admits. “We didn’t know what to expect, and the welcome at Whelan’s was really very moving, people were really excited, and that felt great.

“We’ve played in Belfast—that was great. And then there was one time where we got out to Galway and down to Cork. And that was—really beautiful. In fact, I’ll never forget when we played in Galway. It was around springtime. It was on the cusp of winter and spring. The day after our gig was the first sunny, warm day in a very long time. A lot of people were out on the street, and there were a lot of people singing and particularly a lot of siblings. I remember being so moved by the sound of siblings singing.

“There’s that sort of matching tone in the sound of two or three people singing that you just can’t get if they’re not related. So that’s a very cherished memory.

“It feels really lucky. A lot of friends of ours in the States don’t get to tour in Europe very much. And we’ve always had this sort of equal footing on both sides of the Atlantic, and we feel super blessed.”

• Moon Mirror is out now. Nada Surf play The Academy, Dublin on November 21.