Stuart Murdoch, founder and frontman of the household indie-pop band Belle & Sebastian, has a lot to say. He’s become known for his lighthearted and humorous onstage banter, but when speaking on the phone midday, the singer instead comes across questioning and deeply insightful.

“I just think it’s a gift to be allowed to spend your life creatively,” he tells Billboard. “I could have a couple days of not being creative, and then I wonder why I’m sort of depressed. Then I see somebody at the bus stop, and think, ‘Wow, look at them. Wouldn’t it be great if they were in a ballet that we had written?’ And then I get excited again.’”

The indie outfit’s latest project, a three-part set of EPs titled How To Solve Our Human Problems (out Dec. 8, Jan. 19 and Feb. 16), is where he has poured much of his creative energy lately. The EPs mark a significant moment in the band’s two-decade long career — as many veteran acts vie for relevance, in an unexpected twist, Belle & Sebastian have taken a step backwards.

“Early on, we were very DIY about the music that we made,” Murdoch relates. “We made it all in [our hometown] Glasgow and we did our apprenticeship out in the open. We sort of grew up in public.”

Twenty-plus years later, they decided to find out what studios were still open, trade out professional producers for close friends, and see what happened. “It caused us to make music in a different way,” he says. “The exciting thing was to take an idea that was pretty half-baked, the kernel of an idea, then build it up in the studio. I think it led to a certain freshness with some of the songs, it allowed us to push things a bit further.”

For a back to basics approach, the themes explored throughout the EPs are quite the contrary. They’re forward-focused -- with a name like How To Sove Our Human Problems, they have to be.

A year ago, the band invited fans from all over (about 80 showed) to a studio in London to be individually photographed by Murdoch, and to partake in a one question interview: “How do we solve our human problems?” The photographs were made into the EP album artwork, while the question’s influence is just as prominent. “[We were] just trying to find out quickly what kind of person they were,” Murdoch recalls.

He clarifies that the actual title of the EPs though came from a Buddhist workbook he’s been closely following. He shares that for the past few years, as he approaches 50, he’s been visiting his local Buddhist center two or three times a week. “They would all seem to be reading from How to Solve Our Human Problems. I looked at that book and thought, ‘That’s a really slim book. I would be surprised if all the answers are in there.’ But they are — when you read the book, it’s a very elegant formation of Buddha’s original thoughts when he steps outside into the world.”

Cautious about using the same title, Murdoch consulted a monk who was a former teacher of his. “I asked him, ‘Do you think it’s ok if I call [these EPs] this? I’m not gonna try to put across dharma (Buddhist teaching) in the songs, there might be a few bits and pieces, but it’s going to be artistic.’ And he said, ‘As long as your heart’s in the right place.’"

The song that best illustrates this, he says, is "Everything Is Now," specifically the vocal version on the third EP (there is an instrumental version on the first). The soothing, string-heavy melody and Mudoch's slowly spoken words make sure each lyric sticks: "Lonely as a picture hung in an abandoned room... please let your love be known or it will die," he sings with sorrow in his voice. The sibling songs are the most obvious uniting thread tying these three EPs together, though other highlights include part one's driving dance-worthy track “We Were Beautiful” and the catchy and ever-evolving “Show Me The Sun” off part two.

Much like how Belle & Sebastian released three EPs in 1997 (Dog on Wheels, Lazy Line Painter Jane and 3.. 6.. 9 Seconds of Light), Murdoch sees a renewed trust in the format. “Sometimes you wait for an LP and it feels dead by the time it comes out,” he says, adding how condensing a full-length album is “a bit of a nightmare” whereas he feels less pressure when crafting an EP.

“It’s almost like we made these bite-sized records because we know people’s attention span is not so good these days,” he admits. “It’s a bit like trying to feed a child a meal and they’re just not into it. But if you break it up into little bits, and maybe do the airplane with the spoon, then maybe they’ll swallow it.”

Murdoch himself is still digesting what these EPs mean, and how he would answer the question they pose. "We’re damaged all the time, aren’t we?” he muses. “We hold all these online profiles and put ourselves out there and we’re affected so much by what people think about us — about what we wear, what we look like, what we say, the people we work with, and crucially, I think, the people we live with and our families. All the time, tension. [If we] just focus on ourselves, that’s when we see the problems subsiding. Maybe some of this sounds a little bit petty and a little intricate, but I think this is fundamental to how we live."

He adds: "If you try to put that whole feel into a song, it might be the equivalent of trying to do Christian rock. It would be clumsy and dogmatic, but in this case, I think I’ve let some of the wisdom soak in."