THE wound-up punk-metal noise of Troublegum fired Therapy? to the summit of the charts, sold one million copies, and spurned two of their most venomous singles, Trigger Inside and Die Laughing.

Two decades on, a sequel of sorts to their hit album – their new work Disquiet - is a punishing reminder of the Belfast band’s healthy respect for noise, chaos and brutal musical confrontation.

“We wanted to write something a bit more anthemic again,” said Therapy? leader and vocalist Andy Cairns.

“Clearly it would be idiocy for us to attempt to recreate Troublegum, because that was another era and a different band line-up, but the starting point for this album for me was thinking ‘What would the protagonist of Troublegum be doing twenty years on?’”

Updating that angst-filled long player with soul-bearing emotion and gut-punching force, Cairns added: “I don’t think the album’s protagonist is a happier man, but I think he’s a more capable man in terms of dealing with the world.”

“That was largely impotent rage, while Disquiet is more considered anger.”

Still, Therapy? in this white-hot form sound like they have enough power to block out the sun with their snarling guitars.

“It was never in the game plan to make a melodic rock record with Troublegum, but we succeeded,” recalled Cairns.

“But then people began to look at us differently.

“If you have a successful album, you’re meant to keep your eyes on the prize and ‘Give the kids what they want’.

“Our next album was meant to be a big mainstream rock record.

We were being marketed as a European version of Metallica-meets-Depeche Mode, but that wasn’t really what we are about.”

Disquiet is not a record only buoyed by the occasional killer track.

It is packed dangerously full of them, like a fully-laden fireworks warehouse – all ready to explode at a moment’s notice.

“Folk sometimes think that when Therapy? appeared on the music scene we were immediately seen as cool, but that’s so far from the truth,” added Cairns.

“When we first turned up to play people would just look at us like, ‘Who are these people?’ That suited us fine – it always has.”

n Therapy? Manchester Academy 2, Saturday, April 18. Details from 0161 275 4278.