I'd always assumed BB was released because the deal for Jon's solo album (which did not come to be) or promotional plans for the "proper" new album, or even just negotiations for after the final album for Island did not go akin to Jon's expectations. It didn't seem so much like they had to release the album NOW, due to the label's demand, but that they wanted OFF the label for the actual new album. (Worked out really well, I gotta say.)

They rather obviously had deadlines in the early 2000s... 2000 Crush, 2001 OWN, 2002 Bounce, 2003 TLFR, 2004 TLFR DVD, 2004 Boxset, 2005 HAND. Hell, 2006 still saw the release of a tour EP sold exclusively at Walmart.