Little Big Town’s highly-anticipated fifth studio album, Tornado, hits stores Tuesday. The band is on cloud nine, which is a feeling they’ve had since they were in the studio earlier this year working on the record. “We were feeling it in the moment in the studio, every song. But when you hear it, I think it has an overall feeling to it,” says LBT’s Phillip Sweet. “We laugh about like ‘Pontoon’ has a little bit of a swagger to it, but this whole record has this sentiment…it just has its own unique voice, and it really describes the mood that the band’s been in and the place that we’ve been in our career.”

Bandmate Jimi Westbrook agrees. “There was just this excitement from all of us that was just there, and I think it did – it created this whatever that feeling is [laughs] in the record,” he explains. “It’s that. It’s the tangible energy maybe of how much fun we were having and some freedom that we were feeling.”

The group, who are enjoying their first No. 1 single with “Pontoon,” will appear on ABC’s Good Morning America on Monday, as well as perform during the premiere week of The Ellen DeGeneres Show (September 13th). In addition, the band will perform on the upcoming ABC Television Special CMA MUSIC FESTIVAL: COUNTRY’S NIGHT TO ROCK (September 17th) and will also be featured on CMT’s Unplugged Series which will premiere on CMT.com September 11th and on CMT September 18th.

AUDIO: Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild and Phillip Sweet say the band’s album, Tornado, has an overall feeling to it.

LBT (album has a feeling to it) OC: …same feeling. :34
KAREN: “This record has a feeling to it. [PHILLIP: “Yeah.”] I mean, we were feeling it in the moment in the studio, every song. But when you hear it, I think it has an overall feeling to it. We laugh about like ‘Pontoon’ has a little bit of a swagger to it, but this whole record has this sentiment – and I don’t even know how to define what the sentiment is, it just has its own unique voice, and it really describes the mood that the band’s been in and the place that we’ve been in our career. It’s that same feeling.”

AUDIO: Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild and Jimi Westbrook talk about the “voice” of their new record, Tornado.

LBT (album attitude) OC: …we were feeling. :45
KAREN: “It does have a distinct attitude and a distinct voice.” JIMI: “We were just having fun [in the studio] and loving what was happening, and it seemed really spontaneous. We would cut a track, and just look at each other like, ‘Wow! This feels great!’ And of course our band being the ones that were playing with us and we’re on the road with those guys, and we have such a great relationship with them. There was just this excitement from all of us that was just there, and I think it did – it created this whatever that feeling is [laughs] in the record. It’s that. It’s the tangible energy maybe of how much fun we were having and some freedom that we were feeling.”