Brett Anderson is unlikeable. Speak to the right people, and you’ll also learn he’s a bit of a fruitcake.

These aren’t my observations. It would take a braver man than I to suggest to Anderson – perhaps the most unrestrained, acerbic voice to emerge in the 1990s melodic British guitar boom – that he is at all unhinged or unpopular.

In this case, that man is Mat Osman; articulate, affable Suede bassist and trusted confidant of Anderson since the pair ...