Read what drummer Travis Barker thinks the chance of an original blink-182 lineup is for their next album, and bandmate Mark Hoppus’ words of encouragement about his recent collaborative successes.
blink-182’s Travis Barker isn’t ruling out the possibility of the band’s next album being a reunion of the original lineup after guitarist Tom DeLonge departed on not so great terms in 2015, according to a recent interview with US Rolling Stone.
“Never say never,” Barker told the publication.
“I talk to Tom all the time. We send funny texts and stuff. the times of bad blood and the misunderstandings between us are so over with. It’s all love. We all three talk, and we’re all friends. So, yeah, I will never say never. I think if the time is right and it just made sense…”
Plans for the band’s next album, which Barker told the mag would be underway “more 2022,” may be on hold following bandmate Mark Hoppus’ recent revelation that he is undergoing treatment for cancer.
“I just spent the day with Mark a week ago,” Barker told Rolling Stone.
“Yesterday he was like, ‘Dude, congratulations, I’m so happy for you.'”
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Hoppus was, of course, referring to Barker’s recent high-profile collaborations with Machine Gun Kelly on his album Tickets to My Downfall, and TikTok sensation Jaden Hossler, who is now recording rock songs under the pseudonym Jxdn.
Barker cited these projects as a delay to blink’s new album when speaking with Rolling Stone. “I have so many [other] things I’m obligated to do this year,” he said.
“I want to spend the right amount of time on the Blink album and make sure it’s one of the best pieces of work we’ve ever done… It will be my priority. It will be the only thing I’m working on.”
Potentially putting a spanner into any reunion works, DeLonge’s band Angels & Airwaves will be on the road in the UK and Europe until the end of March 2022, touring off the back of their sixth studio album, The Dream Walker. DeLonge announced the completion of the record on his Instagram:
Here’s the post in full:
“This is me at this exact moment, suddenly retired to my bed with a bit of time on my hands, because I just finished and handed in the new @angelsandairwaves album after a long, and emotionally challenging 3-year journey to try and make an album that could stand out as a special moment in my musical career. I’m kinda excited, are you?”
For more on this topic, check out the Emo Observer.
