Mark Talks About blink-182 In an Interview With ‘Examiner’

From Examiner.com:

I got the chance to talk to bassist and vocalist Mark Hoppus about Blink and their recording plans, as well as his new television program on Fuse and the upcoming KROQ Epicenter show in September; Blink’s only show in California.

Matt Baldwin: Blink’s getting ready to leave for Europe. How has it been playing in Blink since you guys got back together?

Mark Hoppus: It’s been really great. Especially with the tour last summer and now touring again this summer I think that we’re back at the point that we need to be at to get into the studio and record as a band. When we first got back together everyone was very respectful towards one another, a little too much so, in order to go out back on the road and get our chops back together, not only as a band, but as friends and have that kind of shorthand that bands have when they’re together.

MB: Do you think that the break-up and the time apart really strengthened the band?

MH: I think absolutely yes. Being apart for five years not only allowed us a better perspective on the band but as well as ourselves and one another and what our strengths and weaknesses are and what each of us bring to the project and things that we liked about it and things that didn’t work before. I think we’re the strongest that we’ve ever been as a band right now.

MB: Do you think that the side-projects really helped that as well?

MH: The things that we did on the time absolutely allowed us to try different things and experiment. I think it also helped us find out what each of us were great at; it also allowed us to recognize the talents that the other two have. We’ve all talked about this as we got back together that now you realize like, “wow, Tom really brings this great element and Travis brings this amazing element and this is what I bring.” I think the side-projects allowed everyone to recognize that as well.

MB: You mentioned going back to into the recording studio. You’re doing that at the beginning of the year, correct?

MH: No, we’re doing that as soon as we get back from this tour.

MB: Oh okay. Do you guys have songs already written, and what is the sound going to be like for this album? Is it going to be a continuation of the last Blink record (2003’s self-titled) in terms of progression?

MH: I think it will be the next step beyond the last Blink record. We started writing songs together when Blink just got back together a year ago. We’ve been working off and on the whole time and we’re really going to dive into it after this tour. It sounds like it’s going to be the next step beyond the last Blink record. We’ll always have catchy melodies at the core of our band but we definitely want to stretch and try different idea’s as well.

See the full interview here