War of Nerves recorded for the group's 1997 debut album, "All Saints". The group wrote the song as a response to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. In an interview for "The Irish Times", group member Shaznay Lewis reflected, "I never really thought about things like my own death until it happened to Diana. And the song definitely did help me face those feelings." Group member Natalie Appleton named it her favourite song on the album in the Appleton autobiography saying, "the emotions are powerful and it gives me chills." Sarah Davis of "Dotmusic" gave "War of Nerves" four out of five
Nicole Appleton "Black Coffee", which became their fifth and final number-one single in the UK, selling 200,000 copies. Also in 2000, Nicole and her sister both appeared in the film "Honest". This preceded their second studio album, "Saints & Sinners", which debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, eventually reaching double platinum certification in the UK for sales of 600,000 copies. The second and final single was "All Hooked Up" in January 2001, which peaked at number seven. In February 2001, All Saints announced that they were to take a break so that they "could clear the air between themselves".