The former Pulp guitarist has moved away from the standard formula of guitar, bass and drums for Truelove's Gutter, his fourth solo record.

And he has even eschewed the lush orchestral arrangements which have been his preferred accompaniment in the past.

Instead, the 42-year-old from Sheffield has employed an array of weird and wonderful ambient instruments.

"I wanted to use a musical saw, because my granddad used to play that," he says. "I found this guy called David Coulter who plays the saw, so I got in touch and he came up to Sheffield.

"Colin Elliot, who co-produces all my stuff and plays bass, said he used to go to school with a guy called David Coulter, but didn't think it would be the same bloke.

"The David Coulter we had coming to play the saw had worked with Tom Waits, Marianne Faithfull, and all these amazing bands.

"Anyway, Colin went to meet him at the station and they recognised each other – it was the same guy he'd been to school with. They hadn't seen each other since they were 10."

Hawley was also looking for a certain sound – one best described as dropping a microphone into a car engine – but didn't know how to achieve it.

"First off, David got his saw out, and there were three words stamped on it. Made In Sheffield," he says. "I couldn't believe it. It was like this thing was coming home.

"Then afterwards, I explained this sound to him, the car engine thing.

"He went in his bag and pulled out a CD. It was him and (French classical musician) Thomas Bloch, playing an instrument called the Cristal Baschet.

"It was exactly the sound I'd been hearing. I could have kissed him."

Researching the weird and wonderful instrument, made up of 54 specially-tuned glass rods, led Hawley on to other leftfield instruments such as the ondes Martenot, a very early electronic instrument, the glass harmonica, which sounds like rubbing a wet finger around the rim of a crystal glass, and Tibetan singing bowls – finely-tuned metal bowls, which give off a beautiful ambient hum when struck.

"The idea of the bowls came when I was in B&Q with my missus one day," he says.

"We were in there looking for lightbulbs, and I accidentally kicked this big plant pot thing, and it just went 'zing'.

"She was trying to buy things, but I just spent the next half hour or so playing with this big pot."

Hawley is something of a critics' favourite, being nominated for the 2006 Mercury Prize and Best Male Solo Artist at the 2008 Brits, and his latest album explores darker territory than usual.

He's hitting the road to promote the album, and the 18-date tour includes a gig at The Sage Gateshead on Wednesday, October 14.

Tickets, priced £19.50, are available from 443 4661.