After the chart success of their third album, You Me At Six are back doing what they do best. Chris Price caught up with the band who just love playing live.

When it comes to keeping fans champing at the bit, You Me At Six have played it to perfection in 2011. The five-piece rock band's third record Sinners Never Sleep went straight in at No3 at the weekend, thanks to a tantalising media campaign.

It was dubbed rock's most anticipated album of the year, and the band have capitalised on the shed-load of airplay they received in February for their track Rescue Me with American rapper Chiddy Bang.

That single was their highest charting entry to date and began a frenzy of speculation about the direction of their new material after the success of their 2010 album Hold Me Down.

A leak on the internet a few days before the release of Sinners Never Sleep quelled any fears the band were about to sell out. Instead it almost propelled them to the No1 spot, with James Morrison holding them off on Sunday despite the Surrey rockers sitting top in the midweek chart update.

"Some people thought that was the direction we were going in but when you listen to the new album it is nothing like that," said bassist Matt Barnes, 22.

"Everyone is just doing straight rap songs these days. I'm a big fan of rap and the stuff played on Radio 1 but there is a lot of it around. Having said that I thought Rescue Me was quite a good tune. However, we rarely listen to a rock album. We stick on the radio."

Lauded for the live shows, the band will not allow their chart success go to their heads. It is their hard work playing live across the UK since 2004 which has put them in the position they find themselves today.

"We love playing live," said Matt, who owns a clothing line called Cheer Up! Clothing, which supplies outfits for bands like Four Year Strong and The All-American Rejects.

"Live is what we live for. That's a major difference between rock and pop acts. When you are a rock band you need to be tight live. Pop relies on the radio but we rely on gigs. The reason we are in our position is because we have toured the UK so much."

Despite producing the album over the summer, the band have also had a busy live schedule, including a headline appearance at this summer's Hevy Music Festival at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park, near Folkestone.

The live gigs have been useful for keeping them in touch with their fans, keeping them tight live and avoiding any creative blocks. But they have also been a source of frustration.

"It has been annoying to write stuff, record it and then not play those songs on tour," said Matt."We are really excited to play our new stuff on this tour.

"We don't really relax. We don't put three months aside to stay at home and write. When you try to write a song like that you can't do it.

"All the songs came together from us jamming at home, getting a riff and then coming together to build a song around the riff.

"One time we tried to write some songs in a week. We practised straight for a week in Leeds and the four songs we wrote all sucked. Now we just relax and see what comes out."

You Met At Six play at Margate Winter Gardens on Friday, October 14.