Mark Hoppus has revealed that Blink 182‘s new album is taking a more “aggressive and experimental” path than their previous work.
The follow-up to the trio’s 2016 album ‘California’, which was the first Blink album to feature Alkaline Trio‘s Matt Skiba in place of Tom DeLonge, has been in the works for several years.
Now with over 40 new songs recorded, Hoppus said that the new record is set to defy fan’s expectations.
“It’s very different to ‘California’,” he told NME. “It’s a lot more aggressive. It’s darker in theme and tone. If you like ‘California’ to ‘Enema Of The State’ then this album is more like the untitled record where we are trying to experiment more: trying to experiment more, trying different sounds, and trying to expand upon what people think Blink 182 is.”
Asked about his current lyrical inspiration both for Blink and new All Time Low supergroup Simple Creatures, Hoppus replied: “They’re both quite personal. I think that the world is quite a strange place right now in general. People are really wound up, everyone is on edge and that seeps into everything that you do.
“There’s also a lot of hope and positive things happening in the world. Hopefully we are moving the world in the right direction, even in the face of all of these strange obstacles.”
Check back at NME soon for more of our interview with Mark Hoppus
Speaking to NME back in 2017 about plans for new music, Hoppus said that they were working to “push the boundary” of what the band can be.
“We’ll keep the core of Blink 182 but we’ll get a little more experimental,” he said. “Kind of like what we did on the untitled record, which we’re all really proud of. It still sounded like Blink and had that Blink feeling, but it was different and a little more thought out.”
Hoppus and All Time Low’s Alex Gaskarth release their debut EP as Simple Creatures this Friday, before UK tour dates and festival shows this Spring.