FOR more than 20 years he was half of the global pop duo Everything but the Girl.

And with a career as singer-songwriter, DJ, record label owner and author under his belt, Ben Watt is well-established on the UK’s arts scene.

On the back of the release of his second solo album – more than 30 years after the first, Ben (as part of The Ben Watt Trio) is heading for Southampton to play The Joiners tonight.

Ahead of the gig Ben spoke to the Daily Echo about the new album – and whether an Everything But the Girl reunion was a possibility.

Hendra is a poignant collection of heartfelt songs from the master of understated indie pop.

The name comes from an old Cornish word meaning homestead, and the album is dedicated to his late half-sister Jennie.

“The album is very much about accepting life’s big difficulties. We all confront loss at some point. It’s about the weapons we use – humour, anger, disdain, resilience,” said Ben.

“My dad died in 2006 and the song Matthew Arnold’s Field is the story of me scattering his ashes. But I don’t want to come across as gloomy – the album is about survivors. The Heart Is A Mirror is about the idea of hope, love and affection.”

Describing the songs as “all set in vivid landscapes where the outside comes inside and clings to the stories,” the Isle of Purbeck gets a mention too.

Style change “I’ve got a place on the coast there. I love that part of the world. The track Golden Ratio is about walking on the cliffs around Studland.”

Hendra marks a departure in style for Ben. Although the John Martyn-esque folk of his early work and his character-led lyrics are still there, teaming up with ex-Suede’s Bernard Butler gives the album more of a guitar-driven urgency.

Ben is no stranger to life’s gritty side. His first book Patient – the True Story of a Rare Illness (published in 1996) tells of his extraordinary life and death battle with rare auto-immune disease Churg-Strauss syndrome. The book is also testament to his long-term relationship with singer-writer-partner Tracey Thorn, with whom he has three children.

When the two label-mates met at Hull University in 1981 they pooled their songs and crept on to the alt-jazz-pop scene as Everything But The Girl.

Over the next 20 years, they went on to record nine studio albums, scooping several international awards.

EBTG made their last appearance in 2000.

“We don’t have plans to do anything together again. It’s not unforeseeable in the future but we both consider ourselves as creative people. I don’t want to get on a stage and be singing old songs. The idea of playing The Joiners with a trio is brilliant, it’s exciting.’