Hear Benji and Joel Madden weigh in on the best blink-182 lineup
Along with being a member of blink-182 and Simple Creatures, Mark Hoppus recently added radio show host to his long list of accomplishments.
Hoppus just launched After School Radio, a new show where he talks about all things alternative music related. Good Charlotte‘s Joel and Benji Madden recently appeared on the show where they found themselves in the hot seat. Along with Hoppus, the brothers discussed the ongoing blink-182 debate surrounding Matt Skiba and Tom DeLonge.
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Back in 2014, DeLonge parted ways with blink-182 to work on other musical projects. Shortly after, Alkaline Trio‘s Matt Skiba stepped in to fill the vacant role in the band. Since then, fans have long disputed if blink-182 are better with DeLonge or better with Skiba.
Joel and Benji Madden recently appeared on Hoppus’ After School Radio show as they continue to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Good Charlotte’s debut self-titled album. However, Hoppus concluded the interview by handing the controversial blink-182 debate over to the brothers.
Once asked the question, both twins decided to each pick one of the blink-182 members. For Joel, it’s his love for Alkaline Trio that makes him appreciative of Skiba’s role in blink-182. As a musician himself, he knows it must have been hard for Skiba to take on DeLonge’s role nearly six years ago.
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“So I’ve been a fan of Matt for many, many years,” Joel says. “Obviously, I’m a big Alkaline Trio fan. I think he’s got kind of an appreciation for what blink-182 is, that you can see him. When I watch him on stage with you guys, I feel the same appreciation I think he feels with the music, singing the songs. He’s done such a good job carrying the songs in a way that a blink fan wants someone to and appreciates. So I think he’s just filled a very hard spot in a very unique way that as a music fan, I’ve appreciated. Not everyone can pull off stepping in and singing in a band.”
For Benji, he further argues that Skiba never joined blink-182 with the intention of replacing someone.
“I don’t think Skiba is like going to try and replace someone,” Benji says.
As well, he makes the argument that blink-182 with DeLonge and with Skiba are two completely different eras.
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“I honestly can’t choose,” he says. “I think it’s two different things. [I] think the thing that I would say in respect to today, so okay, I’m just going to say what every other Blink fan would say, is that it’s a different era, right? There’s something really special about the memories you have with you, Travis and Tom. But watching Tom’s journey since blink has been really enjoyable for me too. It’s amazing how he’s really sort of been seeking all of the knowledge and aligning himself with all these different people in his To The Stars Academy.”
Although Joel fully supports Skiba in blink-182, he still longs to see DeLonge reunite with his former band in the future.
“I will say that as a fan, lifelong fan, it would be a shame if I didn’t get to see Tom on stage,” he says. “I actually think if Matt could be on stage too, I think there’s a version of this where we watched the whole thing, but seeing Tom on stage singing over the years, some of my favorite songs of all time, it would be a shame if I didn’t get to see that again.”
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Clips from Benji and Joel Madden’s interview with Mark Hoppus is available to stream below. Head here to stream the full After School Radio episode.
Do you agree with Joel and Benji Madden? Let us know in the comments below.
