The fourth album for Pickle Darling, the ongoing recording project of Christchurch-based songwriter Lukas Mayo, was announced under the name Battlebots. But, by the time the LP was released, that title had been shortened to Bots.

"It's officially called Bots now. It was called Battlebots, but we got an email from some people —some important people— saying we can't use the name," Mayo explains.

"I'm sure in your own head canon, in your heart, you'll know the real name... You can call it what you want. I just have to call it Bots."

Its former title, Mayo says, was out to evoke how the songs dealt with "conflict, internal conflict and the mechanics of being a person". The album works with a more fragmented approach to songwriting, and a chaotic, glitched-out approach to production.

In conversation with Anthony Carew on The International Pop Underground, Mayo talks about their hopes for the album, how they're working to create a "unified discography", and the platonic ideal of a fourth album.

Feature image: Nick Robinson