"We all bring music in, y'know," Paul Weller says of his band's consumption of different influences. "After we've finished recording, we'll have like a little session and people will play different tunes, so it can be really varied. It can be anything from some Sixties garage band to a contemporary dance record, from jazz to reggae to whatever really. We're all just mad for music really. All of that stuff gets fed in, goes through the system and comes back in different ways."
Watch Paul Weller talk about his favourite music in the video above
It's that devouring of music across four decades that has allowed Weller to strive forward as an ever-evolving artist. To get behind the sound of his brilliant new album Saturn's Pattern as part of his Gigwise takeover, we sat down with Weller to talk through his listening habits - but he feels like there's something lacking from a lot of today's acts...
"I'm missing a lot of working class bands," Weller tells Gigwise. "I think there's a lot of middle class bands around. Some of it's good obviously, but I'm missing the fire and the anger of the bands who I've just come off a council estate or a block of flats and have got something to say. That's not to say they're not out there at all, because there are still some bands out there, but generally I'm missing that.
"Whether that's just a thing of the past...when I was a kid, right, even though it's a cliche but that's because it's true, music and sport were escape routes from your pre-destined future. When I left school we were factory fodder. You'd end up in a factory or a building site, neither of which appealed to me. I thought that music and rock and roll was a way out of that."
He adds: "Maybe it's just not as glamorous anymore...I think there's that element of people seeing it as a career move. Maybe that anger or aggression isn't there or maybe we're placated by the TV and the internet."
Watch Paul Weller talk about his favourite music in the video above
Watch above as Weller explains his love of new records by the likes of Baxter Dury, Erland & The Carnival, Jagwar Ma, Tame Impala, Laura Marling, how his early loves were The Kinks and The Small Faces, and how he can't help but always revisit John Coltrane and The Beatles.
See the rest of our Paul Weller takeover below
Check out our full Paul Weller takeover below:
INTERVIEW: Weller talks about the drive and evolution behind Saturn's Pattern - watch
TRACK BY TRACK: Weller gives an in-depth guide behind each song on Saturn's Pattern - watch
BEHIND THE FASHION: The Style Council fashion icon tells us how to wear a suit, Noel Gallagher's footwear and why cowboy boots are evil
