For singer Patrick Duff, internalised struggles and a heavy addiction to drugs and alcohol threatened to take his life. His battle with depression and excess were highlighted in one vaguely suicidal "Melody Maker" interview in 1994, and an aborted "NME" interview during which he kept falling asleep due to the drugs and alcohol in his system. After the second album's recording, Duff was booked into a rehabilitation clinic. He wrote about this difficult journey to getting clean for "The Guardian" in 1996: "I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. My personal life was now in tatters – and I decided my last chance was to throw what was left of me into our album. Something was left in me that wanted to do something positive. Thank God." By this time, Nick Powell had joined the band to play keyboards, expanding their sound. A third, eponymously titled album was released 6 October 1997. Written in Bethlehem, South Wales, and recorded at Abbey Road Studio Two, this album was seen as significantly more uptempo than previous albums with Duff choosing to write less directly introspective. Songs like “Superstar” and “Freak”, which were recorded live in the studio with minimal overdubs, set the tone.