'We stopped being brothers years ago,' jokes Isaac, the oldest Hanson at 24. Alongside Taylor 22, and Zach, 19, he's come a long way since 1997's annoyingly catchy MmmBop. 'The sibling rivalry thing doesn't really exist. I hear songs that Taylor and Zach begin writing and I'm constantly challenged because I feel the pressure. I feel I've got to write a better song than that. It's always been a process of pushing everyone so they bring their best songs to the table.'

Disappointed by their record company's plans not to push their latest album, Underneath, Hanson jumped ship and set up their own indie label, 3CG, releasing Penny And Me, their first UK hit in eight years. Since Christmas they've been touring the globe almost ceaselessly.

'We've continued to evolve musically, and so have the people buying our records,' Isaac claims. 'The average age of a person at a Hanson show is 20 and that's pretty much the average age of this band, a bit older perhaps. But at the same time, I don't think if you listen to a Hanson album you'll say "oh wow, this album is targeted at this person or that" because our records have always had a certain element of diversity.' Having grown up in the media glare, Hanson are sanguine about it. They survive, says Isaac, because the brothers still need to be heard.

'We were always in it for the music and nothing else. I always try to keep as much of my life to myself as possible, trying to be known as a musician and not some tabloid star like Paris Hilton. Known for something that's actually socially relevant. If we keep writing good songs, everyone will keep listening.'

Jay Richardson