Gaz Coombes is having the time of his life. The former Supergrass frontman is back in Oxfordshire and creating what he describes as his finest work yet.

His solo album Here Come The Bombs is a masterpiece of sonic experimentation, largely recorded at his home in Wheatley. And it has received rave reviews.

“It’s some of the best music I’ve ever written,” he says warmly, while relaxing at home.

“The lyrics are my best and most honest and I am really proud of it.”

It is two years since Gaz, 36, decided to pull the plug on Supergrass – an amicable end to a remarkable period which saw this chirpy bunch of village boys conquer the world.

Gaz was 16 when he took his first steps into the maelstrom of the Oxford music scene, first as a member of The Jennifers, before forming Supergrass with bandmate Danny Goffey, and friend Mick Quinn, whom he had met while working at the local Harvester. The band, which later expanded to take in Gaz’s brother Rob, proved to be one of the biggest of the ’90s, having six Top 20 albums, three going platinum. Indeed their first album, I Should Coco, proved the biggest-selling debut for Parlophone since the Beatles released Please Please Me in 1963.

And that’s not even mentioning the six Top Ten singles, and the trophy cabinet full of Mercury, Brit and Ivor Novello awards . . .

But while fans of the supersized sideburn-sporting singer may have mourned the end of the band, spirits have been well and truly raised by the release of his solo debut. Gaz, who plays everything on the record, is following up its release with a solo tour, on Saturday playing his former home – in Cowley Road, Oxford.

The show at the O2 Academy, is just down the road from the house he rented when Supergrass were in their infancy.

And while some fans may be itching to hear the old hits, Gaz insists the show will most certainly be ‘Supergrass-lite’.

“I always throw in a few covers and a few things me and Danny did with Hot Rats. And if the gig is feeling right, I could play something familiar. But I want to do it in my own fun way. I don’t want to play diluted versions of Caught by the Fuzz. Supergrass was fun and I am proud of the songs, but I don’t feel I have to play any of those songs. I can perform my new record and let that be.

“It’s a tricky one. Sometimes you need to give people what you think they should have. But I don’t think people will feel anything is missing. I haven’t had people shouting out to me to play Supergrass songs, and it’s really cool that there’s this respect for what I’m doing now.

“I also respect the band’s name enough not to start playing shed loads of its songs.”

He goes on: “I’m delighted with the album. The songs are sounding tighter and tighter and it has really stepped up a gear. And it’s an amazing performance; anything can happen!”

The album, which was partially recorded at producer Sam Williams’s Templesound Studios in Oxford, oozes dreamy synths, pulsating grooves and distorted guitars.

What was the process behind it, I ask. And low long had he been saving up songs?

“Some of it was born out of the frustration of things not working out at the end of Supergrass,” he says, more seriously.

“I had a lot of ideas. And I was lucky enough to have my own studio which meant i was able to put things down as quickly as I could. It was really exciting writing and recording as most things are second or third takes, so are not overdone.

“In a way I wanted a quite instinctive record. In the past we got into bad habits by taking a long time at things. Lyrics have taken a while to polish and we all had an input. There was also an element of perfectionism.

“I have enjoyed taking this fresh approach though, and I have heard the same things from the other boys too.”

Ah, yes... the rest of the band. So do they still hang out together? “Yeah, we are still really close,” he says. “I see Mick a lot and Rob’s my brother – so nothing has changed there. And I went on holiday with Danny a few weeks ago, which was great fun.

“Socially it has always been good. It was just that working together wasn’t great, and it was tough to get good stuff out. The dynamics weren’t as we wanted them.”

But he insists he has absolutely no regrets over what was an amazing period, not just for music, but for their personal and professional lives. Though, he concedes, they left it at the right time.

“I have loads of amazing memories and the stuff we achieved was amazing,” he says.

“But it was the right thing to do and I have now been able to push myself in a different way and rise to a few challenges.

“It was a big thing coming out of my comfort zone. We have been best buddies for years and have always been able to fall back on each other. But it has been good to show I am capable of so much.”

The Oxford show comes after the band were honoured at another venue close to their hearts, The Jericho Tavern.

Gaz, Mick, Danny and Rob were feted at the Walton Street pub last month, receiving a Performing Right Society (PRS) Heritage Award and seeing a plaque unveiled in their honour. The accolade, which follows Gaz’s return to his childhood home in Wheatley, also cemented his Oxfordshire links.

“I love this area,” says the father-of-two. “I travelled the world, saw everything and had lots of experiences but wanted to come back here. I spent 10 years in Brighton and some time in London and in the States, but personal circumstances drew me back.”

Those circumstances included the death of his mother, Eileen, eight years ago. Gaz came back to live with his dad, John, and says he is delighted to be able to give his own daughters Raya May and Tiger a country upbringing.

“I am back and living with dad, which is great,” he says. “A lot of people probably can’t wait to get rid of the house they grew up in, but this holds good memories for me and it’s a great place to be. Wheatley is also a pretty big village and the fact Gaz Coombes lives here is not big news, so I can enjoy a non-intrusive lifestyle.

“I am now just happy to back next to that big field of cows. They may not the same cows as when I was younger – they have all been eaten – but they are still the mums and dads and grandads of the cows we played to when we were in Supergrass!”

  • Gaz Coombes Presents… Here Come The Bombs’ is out on Hot Fruit Recordings
  • He plays the O2 Academy Oxford, on Saturday. Tickets are £12.50 from ticketweb.co.uk