The lives of twin brothers Benji and Joel Madden, the core duo behind Good Charlotte, are the epitome of their 2002 hit “Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous”: They’re attached to Hollywood celebs (Joel has two kids with fiancee Nicole Richie and Benji dates Playboy Playmate Holly Madison), enjoy the L.A. club scene, and regularly grace the pages of Us Weekly. So it’s a triumph that their pop-punk band found the time to not only record their fifth album — but do it twice.

“I love the songs on this record — they really mean a lot to me. We had to get it right,” Benji, 31, tells SPIN.com, explaining his band’s decision to scrap the first version of their new album, Cardiology(out in September), and start from scratch. “The first go-around with the album was an expensive lesson, but it was a good one, and it made the songs that much better.”

Below, Benji talks to SPIN.com about Cardiology‘s return to Good Charlotte’s pop-punk roots, his brother Joel’s family and its effect on their new songs, and the band’s undying dedication to their fans.

Hey Benji. You recently appeared in a celebrity boxing match in Las Vegas and knocked out former MTV VJ Riki Rachtman in one minute and 42 seconds. The YouTube video is great!
[Laughs] I hope you enjoyed it — I certainly did.

So, the new album: what’s the status?
The recording is all done. I’m recording some acoustic versions for B-sides soon. Every few weeks during the recording process, I tracked a cover song — a Beck song, an Army of Me song, an Elliot Smith song — to put on our website for the fans. We wanted to let them know that we appreciated their patience. But now we’re mixing and mastering the actual album. I trained pretty hard for that boxing match while we were making the record. In fact, I finished the last bit of touch-ups on the record and finished my training for the fight on the same day, which was three days before the actual match. It was like reaching the finish line. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted By: David