She was the ultimate party girl while fronting Catatonia in the Nineties - boisterous, beautiful and bursting with joie de vivre.

Cerys Matthews became the darling of the tabloids, with shocking statements about sex clubs and drug dealers and a habit of arriving on stage clutching a bottle of chardonnay.

Then in September 2001 Catatonia imploded under the weight of Cerys's partying and depression.

Rehab followed and it seemed pop had lost one of its most charismatic figures.

But two years down the line an older and maybe wiser Cerys is back and going it alone.

She has just released her debut solo album, Cockahoop, a blend of folk, country, soul and pop which was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, with Bucky Baxter, Bob Dylan and Ryan Adams's old steel guitarist.

"If there is a theme to the album, it's simply finding a story of learning to live and enjoy life again," she says.

Catatonia formed in the early Nineties but it was not until January 1998, after many unsuccessful years on the circuit, that the X Files-inspired single Mulder And Scully propelled the Welsh band to stardom.

It is alleged Cerys went out, blew two grand on champagne and never looked back.

She was a sex symbol who graced all the important front covers and won numerous Sexiest Female accolades.

She was the ultimate in rock star cool, with boozy performances, crude comments and escapades which included disappearing after a Southampton gig and waking up in the south of France the next day.

All of a sudden the band were everywhere but overnight success started to have a detrimental effect as Cerys suffered exhaustion and depression.

Tours were cancelled and then, in July 2001, Cerys was admitted to rehab. By September Catatonia announced they had split.

On a romantic whim, Cerys decided to leave celebrity status behind and settle in Nashville.

"It has been beautiful," she says. "I don't miss any of the attention as I'm not very good at handling it. I never adapted to it. It can be so overwhelming. I love living a simple and normal life."

Last February Cerys married record producer Seth Riddle, in true quirky style arriving at the ceremony on a tractor.

She says: "I feel more settled than I've ever felt in my whole life. I've got so many people around me now, really good people who support me musically and personally.

"I'm married, we're expecting a child and it's great. I would really be at fault if I let the ground fall away from me again. This time it has to be different."

Starts 8pm, tickets £12.50. Call 01273 772770.