It's been a long couple of years for Wolfmother [ tickets ] singer Andrew Stockdale. The Australian found himself without a band in August 2008, when rhythm section and fellow countrymen--Chris Ross (bass/keyboards) and Myles Heskett (drums) packed up and left due to "irreconcilable personal and musical differences."

Now, after a brief hiatus, Stockdale has returned with new musicians--bassist/keyboardist Ian Peres, guitarist Aidan Nemeth and drummer Dave Atkins--and a new album dubbed "Cosmic Egg."

"It's an evolution, I guess, of all the sounds of the first record," Stockdale told LiveDaily while speaking about the new set. "Sometimes it's heavier, sometimes it's lighter, or more kind of stuff like that. I think it's a more magnified version. Where it's heavier, it's heavier. Where it's lighter, it's lighter."

Stockdale explained he didn't feel the dreaded sophomore slump while working on the album, which is a follow-up to Wolfmother's 2005 self-titled Grammy-winning debut.

"What can you do?" Stockdale asked rhetorically. "You make music that you like and the rest is a mystery. You can't really concern yourself too much with sophomore slump. I just think of it as Chapter 2, Chapter 3. The bands that I like, I pretty much like everything they do. When I like a band, I go on a journey with them. I don't know how that translates to the greater population.

"But I did feel pressure to make it good, and live up to your own standards, and you hope you can sit there in the studio and press 'play' and hear it through the speakers and be happy with it and really enjoy it," he continued. "If someone comes in the studio and you play it and you hope they're not looking at the walls waiting to get out of there--that's the pressure that you have."

Stockdale, who keeps his Grammy Award in his recording studio, worked on the album with Alan Moulder, whose production credits include Depeche Mode, The Jesus and Mary Chain, and Nine Inch Nails, among others. Stockdale described Moulder as having a "great temperament" and being a "master at making you sound good." Working with the Brit was an intense learning experience.

"He's an absolute pleasure," Stockdale said. "He made it sound pretty dramatic and full of energy. It just sounds like there's a lot of excitement. He's creative. He captured the performances."

Besides his own music, Stockdale recently recorded a song with Slash for the axeman's forthcoming solo record. According to published reports, Stockdale is in good company, as Dave Grohl, Iggy Pop, Nick Oliveri, Ronnie Wood, Flea, Jason Bonham, Fergie, Duff McKagan and Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine are also featured on the collection.

"It was incredible," Stockdale said of collaborating with Slash. "I really enjoyed it. It was a great, great experience."