Former Boo Radleys songwriter Martin Carr said he saw the split coming even as the band grew in stature.

"The Boo Radley thing was too big and too expensive. It was really a drag and everything was a hassle and I just wanted to get back to being like when we first started," Carr said. "And it was never going to happen. We were just getting bigger and more in debt."

The guitarist for the recently disbanded dance-rock band added that even as the foursome recorded their January release, Kingsize, he could sense it was over.

Although Carr said increasing financial concerns weighed on the band, which had built a loyal fanbase over the years and earned critical acclaim, he was quick to add that the group would have broken up even if the new record had sold millions of copies.

"I've kind of known for about a year that I certainly didn't want to do it after this album. As soon as it enters into your head that maybe you would like to do something else, it's never going to be the same again," Carr, 30, said.

"And you're never going to get back to where you were before you thought of it, and it just nags away at you until you have to start discussing it with the others."

The English four-piece -- which also included singer Sice, bassist Tim Brown and drummer Rob Cieka -- released its fifth LP, Kingsize, Jan. 26. It placed such energetic dance tracks as "Free Hue" (RealAudio excerpt) alongside quiet acoustic numbers like "Monuments for a Dead Century" (RealAudio excerpt).

Named for a character in the classic novel "To Kill a Mockingbird," the Liverpool, England, group released its run of five albums over 10 years, blending elements of dance music and '60s rock with string sections and horns to create the idiosyncratic pop that typified such songs as "Lazarus."

"The Boo Radleys have gone their separate ways," the band's U.K. label, Creation, wrote in a statement. "They feel they have achieved everything they can as the Boo Radleys and are [planning] to pursue other projects."

The statement went on to say that the band members have been friends for almost 20 years and have great admiration and love for one another. It also thanked Boo Radleys fans for their support over the last 10 years.

Though it only has been a short time since the breakup, Carr said he is already looking toward his next project

Explaining that he's been writing songs that sound like "the next Boo Radleys album," he said he has no plans to work with anyone in particular in the near future.

Rather, he explained he was looking forward to working under simpler circumstances.